Black Friday is a special time for me. Back in the day I used to work in Toys R Us and Target where I served in battle on this crazy, crazy day. I was nearly pushed off of a ladder, hit by carts, handled disgruntled, impatient, and unruly "guests" (we were not allowed to refer to them as customers or shoppers). A couple of years later (January 2009) the Lord got a hold of my carnal, wretched, filthy heart and saved me by His grace for His glory alone. He then opened my eyes to biblical evangelism and the necessity of the Great Commission to every believer in Christ.
Last year when the Lord saved me I went back to the battleground on Black Friday, haha. It was a much more pleasant experience spreading the Gospel, handing out tracts, than working for the company! The whole experience was awesome and I was able to hand out hundreds of tracts at Target and then witness at Town East mall afterward. This year I have been looking forward to this day once again, however, I planned to go to the Mesquite Super Target instead. There wasn't a really good spot to begin handing out tracts so I just went down the line. Within about 20 tracts I was asked to stop soliciting by what appeared to be the manager. I then proceeded to go in a rant on how the company owes me and...just kidding. She told me I could not be soliciting on Target property. I explained that I wasn't selling anything or asking anyone for anything, but she was persistent and asked me to leave once again. So I said yes mam and went on my way. I really didn't want to get held up by security so I left pretty quick so I could go somewhere else. God's plan is always better than mine anyways!
I headed over to Best Buy because I knew they opened at 5am and it was about 4:25 at the time. I was a little discouraged because I knew that Best Buy was higher in security and I would probably get shut down pretty quick. When I pulled up there was an even bigger crowd and much to my surprise there was a McDonald's cart set up and a catering company going down the line. I don't know if they had permits or not, but it was good news to me! So I began to hand out million and trillion dollar bills all down the line. Glory to God that I was able to pass 500+ to everyone. The comments always crack me up, sometimes people say some ugly things and rarely you will hear something encouraging, but my favorite line today was from a much older gentlemen. He said, "is this Obama Bucks?", I said no sir, he strongly replied, "good, because they they're worthless!"
It was ironic because last year at a parade I had many people angry with me because I was passing out trillion dollar bills with Obama's face on them. I soon discovered that was not a very smart thing to do in Texas. Now they make them with Lincoln so I don't have that trouble anymore. Best Buy went great. Somehow the cart guy ran a cart into me, but it was all good. Next, I went over to Town East mall. I was pretty hyped up on Mountain Dew and the fact that I was able to tract the whole time at Best Buy, so without thinking much I began passing out tracts inside of Macy's and at the foot of the escalator. Now that is not the best idea or best place to pass out tracts. For the second time I had a manager come at me like a hawk saying that I could not do that here and that I needed to get out and go into the mall. At least she didn't call security. So I said alright and went on my way. She even followed me the whole way out. I wasn't making a scene nor was anyone getting upset, oh well, God is sovereign.
As I walked into the mall it was pretty packed. I always like finding the groups of people sitting down and engaging in conversation with them especially the guys who think they are too cool for school. To simply put it, I had an amazing time. I wholeheartedly believe that God was working on the hearts of some of the people there today who heard the Gospel. Please pray that they would respond in repentance and trust in Jesus Christ. There were many conversations, but there were a few that really stuck out. I had one with 2 youth pastors and a worship pastor. When I asked them how to be saved they gave me the typical Bible belt response along the lines of believing in Jesus and accepting Him into your heart. I praise God I was able to share the Gospel with them and stress the importance of sharing and preaching the law. I had a similar conversation with about a group of 4 other church goers that are involved in ministry.
In two of my encounters I heard very foul language and cussing going on as I approached. When I asked these individuals if they believed they were good enough to go to heaven they responded in a very confident yes because they said they were Christians and asked God to forgive them a long time ago. In one of those conversations there was a girl who very skeptic about Christianity. She made some of the best claims I have ever heard that addressed today's modern Christianity. She said, "how is God good if He lets everyone into heaven just for saying sorry. He just let's everyone off the hook?" She replied this way, because her cussing friend was saying that all you have to do is ask Jesus into your heart and ask for forgiveness.
We proceeded to go onto how God is holy and that He hates sin and the fact that we are sinners and sin every day. I told them that God is angry with the wicked and WE are the wicked. I always explain that this is not a popular concept, but it is biblical. To understand the grace and love of God one must understand that He is righteous and hates sin. That is what makes the cross that more important, because Christ saved us from God's just wrath. I believe a lot of this clicked in the girls head as she had been a witness to so much Christian hypocrisy that goes on today. She had lots of other great questions. The girl with the potty mouth began to question her salvation because she said she had been saved in 6th grade, but was backslidden and not living right. She said that she kind of goes in circles with it. That is when I explained the different between worldly repentance and repentance with a godly sorrow. Turning over a new leaf or trying to stop sinning because it makes you feel better or think it will get you to heaven is not repentance. Biblical repentance is a change of mind, action, and attitude towards sin that produces a godly sorrow. Meaning, you feel bad because you have sinned against God, not because it goes against your morals or makes you feel better. The other conversations went very well too.
I am so incredibly thankful for the experience today. Although, I was sad as usual with a lot of the responses I heard from professing Christians I pray that God will open their eyes to the true Gospel. I was a little shocked to meet those who were not familiar with Christianity and was thankful for that. I also want to state something. My hope and prayer by posting these events and blogs on Facebook is that you might be exposed to biblical evangelism, encouraged, have an opportunity to pray for those in these conversations, understand what people really think out there about these things, and most importantly, that God would be glorified.
Please understand that this is not about me. It is about the lost and it is about Christ being glorified through the foolishness of the preaching of the only Gospel that saves. We only have 70-100 years on this earth, if that. I plead with you to please go serve your King while you still have time. For more information on sharing your faith or resources please check out www.livingwaters.com
In Christ,
Joey
God bless you and thank you so much for reading.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010
The Captivity of Modern Entertainment
I have been reflecting and praying a lot over this issue in my personal life which I believe applies to many of us today. As with anything I write I don't presume to have all the answers, but I do like to share my experiences in hopes of helping the body of Christ and glorifying God in doing so. For those of us who are of Christ and especially not of Christ often kick and scream at the idea that something we love may not glorify God and we probably shouldn't be doing it. We become overprotective or may brush off the conviction by saying or thinking "it's only entertainment, it's fiction, it's not hurting anyone, or it's MY time (aka relaxing time)."
We live in an age of iphones, ipads, i-whatever else they have, fast internet connections, Facebook, Myspace, movies, books and television shows all at the touch of a button. Is it sinful to have these things? I don't believe so. However, what we do with these things is where I think Christians should really examine themselves to see what they are being used for and how much time we are spending on them.
Entertainment and technology motivates, stimulates, and affects individuals in so many other ways that it is something we should take a look at as Christians. Being a Christian doesn't mean you have your designated "Christian/church time" and then your separate whatever you want to do time without any accountability. Holiness isn't an on and off switch. God watches everything we do and if we call ourselves Christian then we are a representative of Christ no matter who we are around, even if we are by ourselves. Sometimes I forget this as do many of us. Now don't get me wrong. We will have times where we slide into sin, but this doesn't justify how we may wrongly spend or plan our time.
I think there are three main reasons for us becoming captive to the world of modern entertainment and they are all rooted in sin, particularly selfishness.
1. The world is at times more attractive to our flesh than Christ and His Word so we spend more time in worldly affairs than things that can actually benefit us and others as Christians. This is often justified by using a 5-10 minute (if that) daily devotional to the Word of God and hope that it balances out the rest of the junk along with easing our conscience.
2. We have begun to feel weird or like a freak from others for desiring God and His Word so we stray from the Word or that which is righteous to pursue things that are more accepting to the world's standards.
3. We want to be more relative to the lost so that we may reach them, which is rarely the case and often a cover up for selfishness.
I've done all three, so I humbly relate. So what do you we about this? There is a valuable principle regarding this that can be taken from the very words of Christ.
Matthew 5:29 - "If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell."
We are to cut out that which causes us to sin in our life not matter what the cost.
Personally, I know that myself and others get looked at strangely or down upon because we may study theology, the Bible, and what is going on in the world from a Christian viewpoint more than we watch TV, sports, or read fictional literature. I also get this when I want to talk about Christ or His Word. There is this societal stereotype that you can only talk about Jesus Christ so much and once you reach that limit you have officially become a fanatic, radical, or freak.
Are sports bad? No
Are hobbies bad? No
Is the TV bad? No
Is fiction literature bad? No
A couple of questions to ask yourselves when evaluating anything you watch, read, or hobby you have could be the following:
1. Is this something God would approve of? If you don't know then look to His Word. If you don't care, then I would examine yourself to see if you are in the faith.
2. Am I spending more time or effort doing this than reading/studying my Bible, spending valuable time with my family, and reaching others for Christ?
3. Would this cause other brothers and sisters in Christ to stumble?
4. Does this hinder or help me grow in holiness/obedience to Christ?
This life that we have is short and we only get to live it once. There is an eternity waiting whether it is one of heaven or hell. The goal of the unbeliever may be to live it up before they die, but to the born again believer in Christ it should be to follow Christ. We are to constantly live for Him and die to self. No matter how hard it may be. Any true Christian will tell you that it is truly a joyous thing to serve the Lord even if times are tough. We are in an ongoing battle with our flesh, Satan, and the world, but it is ultimately a war already won through Christ. We must do our part.
2 Peter 2:24
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
In Christ,
Joey Acker
Do you know God? More importantly, does He know you?
www.needGod.com
We live in an age of iphones, ipads, i-whatever else they have, fast internet connections, Facebook, Myspace, movies, books and television shows all at the touch of a button. Is it sinful to have these things? I don't believe so. However, what we do with these things is where I think Christians should really examine themselves to see what they are being used for and how much time we are spending on them.
Entertainment and technology motivates, stimulates, and affects individuals in so many other ways that it is something we should take a look at as Christians. Being a Christian doesn't mean you have your designated "Christian/church time" and then your separate whatever you want to do time without any accountability. Holiness isn't an on and off switch. God watches everything we do and if we call ourselves Christian then we are a representative of Christ no matter who we are around, even if we are by ourselves. Sometimes I forget this as do many of us. Now don't get me wrong. We will have times where we slide into sin, but this doesn't justify how we may wrongly spend or plan our time.
I think there are three main reasons for us becoming captive to the world of modern entertainment and they are all rooted in sin, particularly selfishness.
1. The world is at times more attractive to our flesh than Christ and His Word so we spend more time in worldly affairs than things that can actually benefit us and others as Christians. This is often justified by using a 5-10 minute (if that) daily devotional to the Word of God and hope that it balances out the rest of the junk along with easing our conscience.
2. We have begun to feel weird or like a freak from others for desiring God and His Word so we stray from the Word or that which is righteous to pursue things that are more accepting to the world's standards.
3. We want to be more relative to the lost so that we may reach them, which is rarely the case and often a cover up for selfishness.
I've done all three, so I humbly relate. So what do you we about this? There is a valuable principle regarding this that can be taken from the very words of Christ.
Matthew 5:29 - "If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell."
We are to cut out that which causes us to sin in our life not matter what the cost.
Personally, I know that myself and others get looked at strangely or down upon because we may study theology, the Bible, and what is going on in the world from a Christian viewpoint more than we watch TV, sports, or read fictional literature. I also get this when I want to talk about Christ or His Word. There is this societal stereotype that you can only talk about Jesus Christ so much and once you reach that limit you have officially become a fanatic, radical, or freak.
Are sports bad? No
Are hobbies bad? No
Is the TV bad? No
Is fiction literature bad? No
A couple of questions to ask yourselves when evaluating anything you watch, read, or hobby you have could be the following:
1. Is this something God would approve of? If you don't know then look to His Word. If you don't care, then I would examine yourself to see if you are in the faith.
2. Am I spending more time or effort doing this than reading/studying my Bible, spending valuable time with my family, and reaching others for Christ?
3. Would this cause other brothers and sisters in Christ to stumble?
4. Does this hinder or help me grow in holiness/obedience to Christ?
This life that we have is short and we only get to live it once. There is an eternity waiting whether it is one of heaven or hell. The goal of the unbeliever may be to live it up before they die, but to the born again believer in Christ it should be to follow Christ. We are to constantly live for Him and die to self. No matter how hard it may be. Any true Christian will tell you that it is truly a joyous thing to serve the Lord even if times are tough. We are in an ongoing battle with our flesh, Satan, and the world, but it is ultimately a war already won through Christ. We must do our part.
2 Peter 2:24
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
In Christ,
Joey Acker
Do you know God? More importantly, does He know you?
www.needGod.com
Saturday, September 25, 2010
An Interesting Night
Yesterday was my birthday and I was grateful to get to spend time with my family and to go witness at my favorite spot afterward. I am so thankful for the many conversations and everything that happened, but I wanted to share two dialogues that I found very interesting.
The first conversation that stuck out was with a girl to be around 17-18. I will attempt to record it the best I can recall, focusing on the main points as we talked for about 25 minutes.
ME: "Hi there! Did you get one of these?"
She looked really scared and I apologized if I had startled her.
HER: "No, what is it?"
ME: "It's a trillion dollar bill. It has the trillion dollar question on it. What do you think happens after death?"
HER: "Oh, wow...ummm..honestly I think there are different portals and we can just travel through them and go where we want."
ME: "Really? Where do you get that information from?"
HER: "My imagination. I also have some other thoughts on what happens."
ME: "Okay, well do you believe in a heaven or hell at all?"
HER: "Well, I grew up in private school so I know about the Bible, but I don't know."
ME: "I understand, if there is a heaven do you think you would be good enough to go there?"
HER: "I really don't know."
ME: "Do you mind if I ask you a couple questions so we can see?"
HER: "Ummm, sure."
We continued to go through the good person test and she replied by saying that everyone has lied, stolen, and etc. She also told me that she understood what I'm saying, but she just doesn't know about all of it and that she was thinking about inventing her own philosophy. The conversation got more interesting.
ME: "How old do you think you will live?"
HER: "It's really weird that you asked me that question because my friend sent me a message the other day asking why I wanted to commit suicide."
ME: "I see, and I would hate for you to feel that way, but what if you are wrong about your beliefs of what happens after death and the Bible is right in saying that we go to hell without Christ." (This was after I shared the Gospel with her.)
HER: "I don't know. I'll think about it. I'll probably regret later not talking about this more with you, but I just have a bunch of things on my mind right now."
ME: "I understand, but there is really nothing more important than your eternal salvation."
HER: "It's weird too that you are talking to me, because I think my friends just ditched me and then you walked up and I was kind of scared at first, but now I'm glad we talked."
ME: "I'm glad and maybe it's not weird because this could be happening for a reason. I really want you to think about that and our conversation because I really do care.
HER: "Alright."
ME: "Do you have any questions at all? Understand that the Gospel is about repentance and trust in Christ alone. There is no other way. If you have a Bible check out John, the fourth book of the New Testament."
HER: "Okay."
ME: "Well, have a great night and thank you so much for talking to me about this."
I pray and hope that her heart would be unhardened and she would fall on the cross of Christ. I really think that the Gospel is exactly what she needed to hear that night and that we crossed paths for that reason. Please pray for her.
This next situation is definitely one of the most animated encounters I have ever had. It was a group of three guys and I was leaving to go home and I actually walked by them. I had this overwhelming feeling that I needed to talk to them, but I shrugged it off. I wound up turning around and going back and then convinced myself that I didn't need to. (What a selfish sinner I am! I thank the Lord for His forgiveness and the conviction that He gave me!)I turned back a third time and finally approached them. One was nineteen and the other two guys were in their twenties.
I started out asking them what they thought about what happens after death and if they ever think about it. One guy kept making funny gestures while I was talking to the other guys, one guy got really serious and said he thinks there is a heaven and maybe a hell, and the last guy said that said that he is a polytheist. Right there I had a suspicion that this conversation was about to get incredibly interesting and emotion.
The dialogue was mainly between Kyle (the polytheist, which means he believes in many gods, which he didn't) and the other guy, I feel horrible that I forgot his name, but I talked to a lot of people that night. Kyle will stick in my head for quite a while because of what happened.
I began the conversation with the law and then Kyle began to say that he believed in the theory of evolution and that there is no proof of God. So immediately this opened up a different situation. I am so thankful to one of my brothers in Christ because he had given me a book he had written the week before on presuppositional apologetics, which is basically defending Christianity not based on evidence (because it is already there), rather it is addressing the individuals presuppositions of the things of God and their world view.
These are some of the basic points of the dialogue:
KYLE: "There is no proof of God's existence and you cannot prove it."
ME: "Actually, I can, but it doesn't matter because you will not believe it. On the other hand, you have no proof that there isn't a God."
KYLE: "I believe in evolution and we all come from apes and molecules. There is a ton of evidence."
ME: "Actually Kyle, there is none. There are no transitional forms, but again you will not agree with me so I'll ask you this. Do you believe that you have a conscience or there is such a thing as right and wrong?"
KYLE: "No I don't think there is such a thing as right and wrong, it is all subjective. I don't believe in any religion either."
ME: "Kyle, actually you do. You believe in yourself and you believe in evolution, which is how you justify the way you live. You seem to have faith in those things."
(This seems pretty confrontational, and it was, but the matter of truth was at hand and if we really care about the lost we will address these things with anyone denies and mocks the truth. He begins reacting very frustrated and angry because he is suppressing the truth that their is indeed a God that he does not want to answer to.) Check out Romans 1:18
ME: "Kyle, do you think rape is wrong?"
KYLE: "Well, hmmm, in a sense I do, but it is subjective as well."
ME: "If someone was being raped right here in front of you, you would do nothing to stop it?"
KYLE: "No, because it has nothing to do with me."
Then his friend who I was with as well said he thinks he was a Christian because he has Jesus in his heart and he tries to do good even though he still cusses and doesn't read his Bible. He would actually chime in time to time when I was talking with Kyle. The friend then says...
FRIEND: "Yeah man, but what if it was your girlfriend being raped right here in front of you. Wouldn't you do something about it??"
KYLE: He thought about this for a while...."It depends on the situation."
ME: "Do you love your girl friend??"
KYLE: "Love isn't real either."
ME: "Sure it is. I love my wife and kids. It's more than an emotion. It is something that you do."
KYLE: "Nope".
ME: "Kyle what do you love more than anything in the world?"
KYLE: "That would be my car."
ME: "Alright, so therefore you do love something, but do you think it would be wrong if someone stole your car?"
KYLE: "Yes, in a sense and I would beat up (used more explicit language) anyone who did it."
ME: "You keep saying "in a sense" in order to not have to admit that there is indeed right and wrong. You love your car and you expressed that it would be wrong. That is your conscience. You do have one no matter how hard you try to harden it."
KYLE: "Well, we get our standard of right and wrong from our ancestors and it is handed down from time. That is how we have morality."
So he has gone from no sense of morality to a generational inherited morality.
ME: "So in what time period would child pornography, rape, and stealing be okay?"
He had to stop and think and obvious did not address the first two.
KYLE: "People steal because they need something. I don't think that is wrong." (He contradicted his statement about the car)
ME: "Not true, I used to steal and I didn't need what I was taking. The fact is your worldview cannot account for any absolute standard of morality of truth and that there is no absolutely no meaning to life. You say that anything goes because morality is completely subjective to that person. If you say that the society determines morality that still does not make it absolute because in your worldview you are saying that if someone else is doing it outside that society then the act would then be permissible. To you we are just a bunch of molecules."
His friend then asked a very good question.
FRIEND: "I see what your saying, but I see what Kyle is saying too. What I have a hard time with is what happens to those people that do not get to hear about this stuff or have a chance to be saved."
ME: "Kyle said earlier that if the Bible is right then we all deserve hell. I agree with him there because we have all sinned against God. We have all broken His law. I see what you are saying though. Think of it this way. If someone came to our country and killed someone, but was ignorant of our laws, would that make him innocent or guilty of the crime?"
FRIEND: "Guilty."
ME: "Exactly. It doesn't matter because the law is the law and God is the lawgiver. We can't say what is fair and isn't fair because we are not the judge and we didn't create the law. God is so loving that he must hate that which is evil because He is just. That is why the Gospel is full of grace and we are to go and preach the gospel! We don't deserve the grace of Christ, but that is the good news and why I am talking to you tonight."
FRIEND: "I get that, but I am a Christian, well...I think I'm a Christian. I really need to be doing what you are doing."
ME: "Doing what I am doing is commanded in the Bible, but it won't save you. Going to church and being dunked under water will not save you either. The Gospel is about repentance (turning from your sin) and putting your full trust in Christ. Our works are like filthy rags to God. We cannot throw our works at Him as if to bribe Him into heaven."
I went on to explain to both of them the difference between head knowledge belief and true trust in Christ. Then the other friend who was doing random stuff walked back up and picked up one of the metal guard poles that were in the ground and was holding it on his shoulder.
OTHER FRIEND: "Hey Kyle, why don't you stick you head in this hole and we can see what really happens after you die."
KYLE: "I'm not going to do that!"
ME: "Wait, now why wouldn't you do that?"
KYLE: "Because I don't want to."
ME: "I think it's because you love your life Kyle and it means something to you."
He got really mad at this and started yelling.
KYLE: "I don't (explicit language) care if I die. I don't care when I do or how I do or even if I do." - - I found this pretty contradictory to his previous statements.
OTHER FRIEND: "Then stick your head in the hole."
KYLE: "No man, whatever."
ME: "Kyle, I see your getting upset, but I really am telling you all this because I really do care and I really believe that you know there is a God, but you don't want to admit it because it would hold you accountable. You have tried to reason Him out by saying that everything is subjective and in a sense in attempt to get out of any moral responsibility. I believe in absolute morality, absolute truth, and an absolute sovereign Creator who made you. The worldview you have conjured up contradicts common logic. I really want you to think about what we have talked about tonight."
KYLE: "I think anyone can believe what they want. I don't have a problem with that. Like 1 percent of my brain says there could be a God, but the other 10 percent says no based on everything I have read and understood."
ME: "That one percent is there for a reason. Again, I have really enjoyed this conversation with you guys and I hope that you will think about this, because there is nothing more important than what happens after you die."
The random friend then stops and says, "Jesus said I am THE way, THE way, not A way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father except through me."
I can honestly say I wasn't expecting that from his mouth in a million years.
ME: "I wholeheartedly agree with you. You are absolutely right. There is no other way. Repent and trust in Him. Thank you guys again so much for the conversation. Check out John in your Bible if you want to know more about this."
We shook hands and parted ways. Like I said, the conversation did get heated, and it was more extensive as it lasted at least 30 minutes. I left out some of the mocking statements by Kyle because there were a lot of foolish things said. I unfortunately could not remember the order and every word. When someone is being confronted with truth or their worldview contradicts itself there is going to be some frustration. I ask you wholeheartedly to please pray for everyone who heard the Gospel that night.
Kyles friend who claimed that he was definitely a Christian said that he wasn't sure at the end of the conversation. He heard the Gospel and understood that his own goodness could not save him. I was absolutely encouraged because the law did a work on their hearts. Salvation is of the Lord and He is mighty to save.
Please pray and thank you for reading my friends!
In Christ,
Joey Acker
The first conversation that stuck out was with a girl to be around 17-18. I will attempt to record it the best I can recall, focusing on the main points as we talked for about 25 minutes.
ME: "Hi there! Did you get one of these?"
She looked really scared and I apologized if I had startled her.
HER: "No, what is it?"
ME: "It's a trillion dollar bill. It has the trillion dollar question on it. What do you think happens after death?"
HER: "Oh, wow...ummm..honestly I think there are different portals and we can just travel through them and go where we want."
ME: "Really? Where do you get that information from?"
HER: "My imagination. I also have some other thoughts on what happens."
ME: "Okay, well do you believe in a heaven or hell at all?"
HER: "Well, I grew up in private school so I know about the Bible, but I don't know."
ME: "I understand, if there is a heaven do you think you would be good enough to go there?"
HER: "I really don't know."
ME: "Do you mind if I ask you a couple questions so we can see?"
HER: "Ummm, sure."
We continued to go through the good person test and she replied by saying that everyone has lied, stolen, and etc. She also told me that she understood what I'm saying, but she just doesn't know about all of it and that she was thinking about inventing her own philosophy. The conversation got more interesting.
ME: "How old do you think you will live?"
HER: "It's really weird that you asked me that question because my friend sent me a message the other day asking why I wanted to commit suicide."
ME: "I see, and I would hate for you to feel that way, but what if you are wrong about your beliefs of what happens after death and the Bible is right in saying that we go to hell without Christ." (This was after I shared the Gospel with her.)
HER: "I don't know. I'll think about it. I'll probably regret later not talking about this more with you, but I just have a bunch of things on my mind right now."
ME: "I understand, but there is really nothing more important than your eternal salvation."
HER: "It's weird too that you are talking to me, because I think my friends just ditched me and then you walked up and I was kind of scared at first, but now I'm glad we talked."
ME: "I'm glad and maybe it's not weird because this could be happening for a reason. I really want you to think about that and our conversation because I really do care.
HER: "Alright."
ME: "Do you have any questions at all? Understand that the Gospel is about repentance and trust in Christ alone. There is no other way. If you have a Bible check out John, the fourth book of the New Testament."
HER: "Okay."
ME: "Well, have a great night and thank you so much for talking to me about this."
I pray and hope that her heart would be unhardened and she would fall on the cross of Christ. I really think that the Gospel is exactly what she needed to hear that night and that we crossed paths for that reason. Please pray for her.
This next situation is definitely one of the most animated encounters I have ever had. It was a group of three guys and I was leaving to go home and I actually walked by them. I had this overwhelming feeling that I needed to talk to them, but I shrugged it off. I wound up turning around and going back and then convinced myself that I didn't need to. (What a selfish sinner I am! I thank the Lord for His forgiveness and the conviction that He gave me!)I turned back a third time and finally approached them. One was nineteen and the other two guys were in their twenties.
I started out asking them what they thought about what happens after death and if they ever think about it. One guy kept making funny gestures while I was talking to the other guys, one guy got really serious and said he thinks there is a heaven and maybe a hell, and the last guy said that said that he is a polytheist. Right there I had a suspicion that this conversation was about to get incredibly interesting and emotion.
The dialogue was mainly between Kyle (the polytheist, which means he believes in many gods, which he didn't) and the other guy, I feel horrible that I forgot his name, but I talked to a lot of people that night. Kyle will stick in my head for quite a while because of what happened.
I began the conversation with the law and then Kyle began to say that he believed in the theory of evolution and that there is no proof of God. So immediately this opened up a different situation. I am so thankful to one of my brothers in Christ because he had given me a book he had written the week before on presuppositional apologetics, which is basically defending Christianity not based on evidence (because it is already there), rather it is addressing the individuals presuppositions of the things of God and their world view.
These are some of the basic points of the dialogue:
KYLE: "There is no proof of God's existence and you cannot prove it."
ME: "Actually, I can, but it doesn't matter because you will not believe it. On the other hand, you have no proof that there isn't a God."
KYLE: "I believe in evolution and we all come from apes and molecules. There is a ton of evidence."
ME: "Actually Kyle, there is none. There are no transitional forms, but again you will not agree with me so I'll ask you this. Do you believe that you have a conscience or there is such a thing as right and wrong?"
KYLE: "No I don't think there is such a thing as right and wrong, it is all subjective. I don't believe in any religion either."
ME: "Kyle, actually you do. You believe in yourself and you believe in evolution, which is how you justify the way you live. You seem to have faith in those things."
(This seems pretty confrontational, and it was, but the matter of truth was at hand and if we really care about the lost we will address these things with anyone denies and mocks the truth. He begins reacting very frustrated and angry because he is suppressing the truth that their is indeed a God that he does not want to answer to.) Check out Romans 1:18
ME: "Kyle, do you think rape is wrong?"
KYLE: "Well, hmmm, in a sense I do, but it is subjective as well."
ME: "If someone was being raped right here in front of you, you would do nothing to stop it?"
KYLE: "No, because it has nothing to do with me."
Then his friend who I was with as well said he thinks he was a Christian because he has Jesus in his heart and he tries to do good even though he still cusses and doesn't read his Bible. He would actually chime in time to time when I was talking with Kyle. The friend then says...
FRIEND: "Yeah man, but what if it was your girlfriend being raped right here in front of you. Wouldn't you do something about it??"
KYLE: He thought about this for a while...."It depends on the situation."
ME: "Do you love your girl friend??"
KYLE: "Love isn't real either."
ME: "Sure it is. I love my wife and kids. It's more than an emotion. It is something that you do."
KYLE: "Nope".
ME: "Kyle what do you love more than anything in the world?"
KYLE: "That would be my car."
ME: "Alright, so therefore you do love something, but do you think it would be wrong if someone stole your car?"
KYLE: "Yes, in a sense and I would beat up (used more explicit language) anyone who did it."
ME: "You keep saying "in a sense" in order to not have to admit that there is indeed right and wrong. You love your car and you expressed that it would be wrong. That is your conscience. You do have one no matter how hard you try to harden it."
KYLE: "Well, we get our standard of right and wrong from our ancestors and it is handed down from time. That is how we have morality."
So he has gone from no sense of morality to a generational inherited morality.
ME: "So in what time period would child pornography, rape, and stealing be okay?"
He had to stop and think and obvious did not address the first two.
KYLE: "People steal because they need something. I don't think that is wrong." (He contradicted his statement about the car)
ME: "Not true, I used to steal and I didn't need what I was taking. The fact is your worldview cannot account for any absolute standard of morality of truth and that there is no absolutely no meaning to life. You say that anything goes because morality is completely subjective to that person. If you say that the society determines morality that still does not make it absolute because in your worldview you are saying that if someone else is doing it outside that society then the act would then be permissible. To you we are just a bunch of molecules."
His friend then asked a very good question.
FRIEND: "I see what your saying, but I see what Kyle is saying too. What I have a hard time with is what happens to those people that do not get to hear about this stuff or have a chance to be saved."
ME: "Kyle said earlier that if the Bible is right then we all deserve hell. I agree with him there because we have all sinned against God. We have all broken His law. I see what you are saying though. Think of it this way. If someone came to our country and killed someone, but was ignorant of our laws, would that make him innocent or guilty of the crime?"
FRIEND: "Guilty."
ME: "Exactly. It doesn't matter because the law is the law and God is the lawgiver. We can't say what is fair and isn't fair because we are not the judge and we didn't create the law. God is so loving that he must hate that which is evil because He is just. That is why the Gospel is full of grace and we are to go and preach the gospel! We don't deserve the grace of Christ, but that is the good news and why I am talking to you tonight."
FRIEND: "I get that, but I am a Christian, well...I think I'm a Christian. I really need to be doing what you are doing."
ME: "Doing what I am doing is commanded in the Bible, but it won't save you. Going to church and being dunked under water will not save you either. The Gospel is about repentance (turning from your sin) and putting your full trust in Christ. Our works are like filthy rags to God. We cannot throw our works at Him as if to bribe Him into heaven."
I went on to explain to both of them the difference between head knowledge belief and true trust in Christ. Then the other friend who was doing random stuff walked back up and picked up one of the metal guard poles that were in the ground and was holding it on his shoulder.
OTHER FRIEND: "Hey Kyle, why don't you stick you head in this hole and we can see what really happens after you die."
KYLE: "I'm not going to do that!"
ME: "Wait, now why wouldn't you do that?"
KYLE: "Because I don't want to."
ME: "I think it's because you love your life Kyle and it means something to you."
He got really mad at this and started yelling.
KYLE: "I don't (explicit language) care if I die. I don't care when I do or how I do or even if I do." - - I found this pretty contradictory to his previous statements.
OTHER FRIEND: "Then stick your head in the hole."
KYLE: "No man, whatever."
ME: "Kyle, I see your getting upset, but I really am telling you all this because I really do care and I really believe that you know there is a God, but you don't want to admit it because it would hold you accountable. You have tried to reason Him out by saying that everything is subjective and in a sense in attempt to get out of any moral responsibility. I believe in absolute morality, absolute truth, and an absolute sovereign Creator who made you. The worldview you have conjured up contradicts common logic. I really want you to think about what we have talked about tonight."
KYLE: "I think anyone can believe what they want. I don't have a problem with that. Like 1 percent of my brain says there could be a God, but the other 10 percent says no based on everything I have read and understood."
ME: "That one percent is there for a reason. Again, I have really enjoyed this conversation with you guys and I hope that you will think about this, because there is nothing more important than what happens after you die."
The random friend then stops and says, "Jesus said I am THE way, THE way, not A way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father except through me."
I can honestly say I wasn't expecting that from his mouth in a million years.
ME: "I wholeheartedly agree with you. You are absolutely right. There is no other way. Repent and trust in Him. Thank you guys again so much for the conversation. Check out John in your Bible if you want to know more about this."
We shook hands and parted ways. Like I said, the conversation did get heated, and it was more extensive as it lasted at least 30 minutes. I left out some of the mocking statements by Kyle because there were a lot of foolish things said. I unfortunately could not remember the order and every word. When someone is being confronted with truth or their worldview contradicts itself there is going to be some frustration. I ask you wholeheartedly to please pray for everyone who heard the Gospel that night.
Kyles friend who claimed that he was definitely a Christian said that he wasn't sure at the end of the conversation. He heard the Gospel and understood that his own goodness could not save him. I was absolutely encouraged because the law did a work on their hearts. Salvation is of the Lord and He is mighty to save.
Please pray and thank you for reading my friends!
In Christ,
Joey Acker
Friday, August 20, 2010
Suppressing Truth
I thank the Lord for another great night of witnessing on Friday night. I pray that His glory is always the central focus through the planting of seeds and that souls would be won for Christ. The call and command of spreading the Gospel is sometimes uncomfortable, unpredictable, stressful, joyous, rewarding, fun, and so many other emotions and different situations come to mind, but in the end how I feel about it doesn't matter. What matters is that we are obedient and we are spreading the Gospel whether it is by using a gospel tract, open air preaching, typing to someone on the internet, talking one to one to a stranger, family member, or a friend. We need to realize that the proclamation of the Gospel requires words despite the famous quote that many people use which says, "Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words." Not only is that NOT biblical, there is also no documentation, records, or any evidence of St. Francis ever saying that. No evidence or record...kind of like evolution!
I have noticed that many churches emphasize inviting someone to church rather than actually evangelizing. While it is not bad to invite an unbeliever to church one has to consider if their church even includes the Gospel message in their sermon. Many churches unfortunately have alter calls without the Gospel even being preached. If that is the case then there is probably something wrong with that situation and it is producing false conversions which is so prominent in our country. We don't want to take someone to a church that is just going to make them feel better about themselves for a week. They need to be taken somewhere where they will understand their condition before God and hear the Gospel. Another mistake is that we assume that it is solely the churches (building/staff responsibility to spread the Gospel and we try to pass the ball to them.
I often pray that my thinking and prayers are eternally geared. Meaning, that I understand and comprehend that the person that is walking by me could die that very day or I may miss my chance to share the Gospel with that family member or friend that I have been praying for. Oh if I only lived everyday like it were my last. It is a feat than I honestly never know if I will be able to accomplish, but I strive to. If it were though, I would want to spend it sharing the Gospel, with my family by my side, and giving glory to God in every moment and aspect of that day as we should everyday.
With all that being said I want to share a conversation that I had recently with a guy named Travis. He was probably about my age or a little bit younger. I was making one of my rounds around the Harbor when I saw him leaving. He had long hair, a guitar on his back and his name was Taylor. I approached him. (This conversation lasted about 40-45 minutes, but I'll try to sum it up with the important points as best I can)...
Me: "Hi, did you get one of these?" (handing him a trillion dollar bill)
Taylor: "Yes, I've gotten several of these."
Me: "Oh, okay, has anyone ever talked to you about it before? It asks the trillion dollar question. What do you think happens after we die?"
Taylor: "Yeah, I've talked to a lot of people about this stuff and basically I think when we die we go in the ground and our bones dissolve along with our brains disintegrating...he gave me the science of the process)
Me: "I see, well I am a born again Christian. Do you mind if I share what I believe based on the Bible even though you may have heard this before like you said?"
Taylor: "Sure"
Me: "Has anyone ever asked you the Ten Commandments or the Good Person Test before?" (I figured they had if they handed him a Living Waters tract)
Taylor: "Yes, and morally I am a good person. I do good things. I think killing and abortion is wrong. I don't cuss or do anything that is bad. I come up here a lot and I see things that disgust me. Girls wearing shorts that are entirely too short. Guys who are hitting on two or three girls at a time, underage drinking, cussing, and other things that make me sick."(Throughout the conversation he kept proclaiming his goodness)
Me: "I gotcha. Well the reason I usually ask the 10 Commandments that you are familiar with is because they really show our condition before God. I thought I was a good person based on my morals as well. But our morality is nothing compared to God's. Breaking one of His commandments makes us guilty of them all.
Taylor: "Well, I study philosophy, history, and different religions a lot and I have a lot of problems with their being a God and especially Christianity."
Me: "Really? I enjoy studying those things as well. But please understand that not everyone who says they are a Christian or does something in the name of Christianity is one just because they say so."
Taylor: "I understand that, but honestly I can't believe in God and I don't want to because I don't understand why he would just let there be so much evil in the world."
Me: "I see what your saying, but far too often what we do is concentrate on all the evil ignoring all the goodness and grace of God. Look at you standing here and talking to me right now in good health with your guitar at this nice place. We are here right now by God's grace. There is evil in the world because man is sinful and we live in a fallen creation. Are you familiar with the Adam and Eve story?
Taylor: "Yes, but I can't accept that a loving God would just let bad things happen such as pain, suffering, and poverty. Why not just make everyone happy and healthy?
Me: "God shows His love to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. (I proceeded to share the Gospel with Him) We ask, " why this, why that, God," and completely try to shut out that He did this great thing for us and the common grace that He gives us through life."
Taylor: "I have a problem with that too because I didn't ask him to do that for me and I would hang on a cross because I love the world that much too. What people don't realize is that there are people today and all throughout history who suffered worse than Jesus. There are people who were tormented their whole lives worse than him and Jesus wasn't even here that long or suffered that long."
Me: "The reason Jesus had to die on the cross was because only the sacrifice of God, which is who Jesus is, could be sufficient for the whole world. We can look in history today and see that there are people possibly tortured, PHYSICALLY, more brutally and longer than Jesus, but the Bible also talks about Jesus suffering the wrath of God on the cross. That is something so horrible that we cannot see or comprehend what He went through on the cross.
Taylor: "I'm sorry, but there is just no way of knowing that there is a god. It is possible for a child to know something the father knows. (I'm not sure where he was going with that)
Me: "Sure there is. You have a conscience. Look at creation as it gives evidence to a masterful Creator. We have a whole book from Him!
Taylor: "There are so many contradictions in the Bible and over time we have progressive knowledge. We used to think the sun was a god and over time we realized that it wasn't. There are so many instances like that.
Me: "I agree that we have progressive knowledge. For instance, the world said that the earth is flat when indeed the Bible points to it being round. There are other instances in the Bible where science is still catching up with the truths that can be found in the Bible. Contradictions can be found in anything when something is pulled out of context and unfortunately that happens in the Bible a lot so someone can shape their own beliefs. That is why we are to study it and take it in context with itself."
Taylor: "Okay, but I can't understand why someone has to go to hell just because they are not baptized or part of a certain church or etc. My dad would let me into Heaven even though we have different paths or agree on things. I am a morally good person so I think that kind of god would just let me in.((He brought up quite a bit of Catholic theology and history (crusades) throughout the conversation))
Me: "Everyone without Jesus Christ is going to hell because we sinned against God and broke His law. A baptism or church attendance does not save. No one is innocent or good, we are all guilty. You can see that by looking at our world. We want to think that we are good, but that is not what the Bible says. We are all bent towards evil. That is why we need a redeemer. Someone who can pay our fine, which is Jesus, who is the only way. You talk about nations being wiped out in the Old Testament, but they did exactly what you are doing right now. You are proclaiming your own goodness and spitting in God's face by saying that you won't believe in Him and you don't need Him when He has shown you His glory through creation, conscience, and His Word."
He kind of skipped around, but then brought up his morals again so I asked another question.
Me: "The 10 Commandments are God's holy standard. That is where we get our morality as it is written on our hearts. Where do you get your stand of what is right and wrong?"
Taylor: "I believe a society determines what is right and wrong. Throughout time we have established better standards and morals to whatever fits that certain society."
Me: "So you are saying that it is only right to the person?"
Taylor: "No, the society."
Me: "So was the Nazi society right when they killed thousands of Jews or when terrorists bomb and crash planes in the name of Islam?"
Taylor: "Actually the Islam faith isn't brutal, it is really a religion of peace. In the Koran, which I have read, it says no where to actually kill the infidels, but to show them peace."
Me: "Then why does it say in Surah 9:5 - to kill the infidels...?"
Taylor: "Well, the Koran has contradictions just like the Bible."
Me: "The Koran does have many contradictions, but we already went over the Bible and it does not, but would you say that the Nazi's were right or wrong?"
Taylor: "I think it's wrong, but to them it is right."
Me: "Okay, so you are saying that there is no sense of absolute morality. It is solely based on a societies standard?"
Taylor: "Well, I don't believe in a supernatural moral code."
Me: "Alright, then you think child pornography is okay if a certain society says it is?"
Taylor: "No, I think it is wrong and I will speak out against it."
Me: "But if you were saying there is no standard for right and wrong outside of a society then it is "right" in a sense because that individual believes it to be."
Taylor: "I don't agree with it, but I just think there is no supernatural moral code."
Me: "So you are basically saying it is okay if someone believes it to be true and that there is no right and wrong. The Bible reveals to us God's standard of morality which is written on our hearts. Taylor, do you believe we all came from monkeys...?
Taylor: "Yes, we evolved. We can see similarities between different species. There is loads of evidence.
Me: "While there are similarities there are no transitional forms. There are huge holes in the evolutionary model. I know you are better than that and that you were uniquely created. I really don't believe you are just an animal."
Taylor: "We are all animals. If God is real then why can dolphins show affection and bears use logic like we do...(he used some other examples as well).
Me: "That has absolutely nothing to do with the existence of God besides the fact that He is creative in His creation."
Taylor: I'm sorry, I respect what your trying to do, but I just will not believe it. I just don't want to. When I was young I was told the story of Job and how God killed his children and took everything away from him."
(He knew this story very well and other theological principles in the Bible. It is unfortunate that many people like this know more about the Bible than many who proclaim to be Christians)
Taylor: That is awful and I don't understand how a loving God could do that.
Me: Don't end the story there. You didn't tell what God then did.
Taylor: Yeah, I know He gave Him more kids and stuff, but that still doesn't justify what He did just to prove a point.
Me: "I know to us it is hard to comprehend, but the fact is, is that we are the clay and He is the potter. The clay doesn't tell that potter how he wants to be made or tell the potter what to do. God's ways are His ways and they are perfect even if we can't understand. But we can see that the principle behind the story is that we go through trials and tribulations, but God is faithful. He rewarded Job for his faithfulness in the end more than before. If we focus on the emotional aspect of every instance then we lose the truth aspect and bigger picture."
Taylor: "I would rather go to hell than be in Heaven with God like that."
Me: "Taylor, I don't want that for you and you seem to not understand that hell is for eternity. It is the weeping and gnashing of teeth where the fire is never quenched and the worm never dies. Whether you believe it or not will change it."
Taylor: "Let me ask you this. What is your idea of hell?
Me: "It doesn't matter what my idea is about hell or any of this. What matters is what God's Word says which I told you. The Bible was written by more than 40 men of various occupational and cultural backgrounds, over 1,500 hundreds years in the making, throughout 3 continents, and it contains several fulfilled prophecies. It is the only truth that matters in the world and you may say you don't believe it or there is an error here or there, but it will not change the fact that it is God's Word."
Me: "Taylor, I understand that these facts I'm telling you are not going to convince you of anything. I know that, but I want you to think about what we have talked about and what if all this is true. Do you love life?"
Taylor: "Yes, I love life, but I wrote a paper in philosophy about how it would be better if we were never born because ignorance is bliss and there would be no pain and suffering. I used to study religion more, but now I am really into art. I write songs about love, the world, and other people. I really do love life though."
Taylor: "But listen, I really gotta go, but I'll let you have the last word after I say this. You are probably going to tell me that Jesus loves me so much and I would be crazy not to accept Him because of His love. But I like the way I live and I enjoy life. I'm a good person and I do good things. I won't go in a church and yell at someone because I disagree with them because I am a good person like that. I just don't want to worship a God who does the things He does in the Bible. I can't accept that."
Me: "I'm not going to tell you that Jesus loves you or to accept Him, because He doesn't need it, but the Bible does command that you repent and trust in Him. I really do care about you and I don't want to see you go to hell, seriously. I really just want you to consider what we talked about tonight. You may throw these away, but will you please take these and think about reading them?"
(I handed him 3 booklets, Save Yourself Some Pain, Why Christianity?, and Scientific Evidence Found in the Bible by Ray Comfort.
Taylor: "Yes, I'll take them"
Me: "Well, listen man. I really appreciated the conversation and you listening and dialoguing with me. I really enjoyed it and it is definitely healthy to talk about these things. Just check out that information please and have a great night because I know you love life and eternity is a long time to be wrong about all this."
And we parted ways. It never got heated or anything although he did jump to different topics when he could not respond to a certain point. The important part is that the law and Gospel was shared. I pray that the Lord unhardens his heart. He obviously knew there was a creator as he would get very emotional towards God when we discussed certain things. He brought up past experiences and more reasons why he did not like God, but Romans 1:18-19 kept ringing in my ears during the conversation. You could see him suppressing the truth when given to him of a holy, righteous, just, merciful, loving, Creator.
"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made." - Roans 1:18-20
The Bible is so true when it says that every man proclaims his own goodness. We may not all do it in the same way, but we do without the grace and redemption of Jesus Christ. The more I witness and walk with the Lord the more I am being able to apply and understand these amazing biblical truths.
All the other conversations in the night went excellent as well. However,I was let down by the many church goers who couldn't tell me how to get to Heaven or even what the Gospel is when I asked. A group of girls said that there were probably going to talk about the law and Gospel that was shared with them until 4 in the morning that night after our conversation! Even though I'm not sure if I am ever seeing conversion take place it does bring me joy to see people taking their eternal salvation and the things of God seriously whether it is a positive or negative experience to me. Please pray for everyone who got a tract and heard the Gospel!
Salvation is of the Lord, but He wants us to plant the seeds!
May God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey
I have noticed that many churches emphasize inviting someone to church rather than actually evangelizing. While it is not bad to invite an unbeliever to church one has to consider if their church even includes the Gospel message in their sermon. Many churches unfortunately have alter calls without the Gospel even being preached. If that is the case then there is probably something wrong with that situation and it is producing false conversions which is so prominent in our country. We don't want to take someone to a church that is just going to make them feel better about themselves for a week. They need to be taken somewhere where they will understand their condition before God and hear the Gospel. Another mistake is that we assume that it is solely the churches (building/staff responsibility to spread the Gospel and we try to pass the ball to them.
I often pray that my thinking and prayers are eternally geared. Meaning, that I understand and comprehend that the person that is walking by me could die that very day or I may miss my chance to share the Gospel with that family member or friend that I have been praying for. Oh if I only lived everyday like it were my last. It is a feat than I honestly never know if I will be able to accomplish, but I strive to. If it were though, I would want to spend it sharing the Gospel, with my family by my side, and giving glory to God in every moment and aspect of that day as we should everyday.
With all that being said I want to share a conversation that I had recently with a guy named Travis. He was probably about my age or a little bit younger. I was making one of my rounds around the Harbor when I saw him leaving. He had long hair, a guitar on his back and his name was Taylor. I approached him. (This conversation lasted about 40-45 minutes, but I'll try to sum it up with the important points as best I can)...
Me: "Hi, did you get one of these?" (handing him a trillion dollar bill)
Taylor: "Yes, I've gotten several of these."
Me: "Oh, okay, has anyone ever talked to you about it before? It asks the trillion dollar question. What do you think happens after we die?"
Taylor: "Yeah, I've talked to a lot of people about this stuff and basically I think when we die we go in the ground and our bones dissolve along with our brains disintegrating...he gave me the science of the process)
Me: "I see, well I am a born again Christian. Do you mind if I share what I believe based on the Bible even though you may have heard this before like you said?"
Taylor: "Sure"
Me: "Has anyone ever asked you the Ten Commandments or the Good Person Test before?" (I figured they had if they handed him a Living Waters tract)
Taylor: "Yes, and morally I am a good person. I do good things. I think killing and abortion is wrong. I don't cuss or do anything that is bad. I come up here a lot and I see things that disgust me. Girls wearing shorts that are entirely too short. Guys who are hitting on two or three girls at a time, underage drinking, cussing, and other things that make me sick."(Throughout the conversation he kept proclaiming his goodness)
Me: "I gotcha. Well the reason I usually ask the 10 Commandments that you are familiar with is because they really show our condition before God. I thought I was a good person based on my morals as well. But our morality is nothing compared to God's. Breaking one of His commandments makes us guilty of them all.
Taylor: "Well, I study philosophy, history, and different religions a lot and I have a lot of problems with their being a God and especially Christianity."
Me: "Really? I enjoy studying those things as well. But please understand that not everyone who says they are a Christian or does something in the name of Christianity is one just because they say so."
Taylor: "I understand that, but honestly I can't believe in God and I don't want to because I don't understand why he would just let there be so much evil in the world."
Me: "I see what your saying, but far too often what we do is concentrate on all the evil ignoring all the goodness and grace of God. Look at you standing here and talking to me right now in good health with your guitar at this nice place. We are here right now by God's grace. There is evil in the world because man is sinful and we live in a fallen creation. Are you familiar with the Adam and Eve story?
Taylor: "Yes, but I can't accept that a loving God would just let bad things happen such as pain, suffering, and poverty. Why not just make everyone happy and healthy?
Me: "God shows His love to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. (I proceeded to share the Gospel with Him) We ask, " why this, why that, God," and completely try to shut out that He did this great thing for us and the common grace that He gives us through life."
Taylor: "I have a problem with that too because I didn't ask him to do that for me and I would hang on a cross because I love the world that much too. What people don't realize is that there are people today and all throughout history who suffered worse than Jesus. There are people who were tormented their whole lives worse than him and Jesus wasn't even here that long or suffered that long."
Me: "The reason Jesus had to die on the cross was because only the sacrifice of God, which is who Jesus is, could be sufficient for the whole world. We can look in history today and see that there are people possibly tortured, PHYSICALLY, more brutally and longer than Jesus, but the Bible also talks about Jesus suffering the wrath of God on the cross. That is something so horrible that we cannot see or comprehend what He went through on the cross.
Taylor: "I'm sorry, but there is just no way of knowing that there is a god. It is possible for a child to know something the father knows. (I'm not sure where he was going with that)
Me: "Sure there is. You have a conscience. Look at creation as it gives evidence to a masterful Creator. We have a whole book from Him!
Taylor: "There are so many contradictions in the Bible and over time we have progressive knowledge. We used to think the sun was a god and over time we realized that it wasn't. There are so many instances like that.
Me: "I agree that we have progressive knowledge. For instance, the world said that the earth is flat when indeed the Bible points to it being round. There are other instances in the Bible where science is still catching up with the truths that can be found in the Bible. Contradictions can be found in anything when something is pulled out of context and unfortunately that happens in the Bible a lot so someone can shape their own beliefs. That is why we are to study it and take it in context with itself."
Taylor: "Okay, but I can't understand why someone has to go to hell just because they are not baptized or part of a certain church or etc. My dad would let me into Heaven even though we have different paths or agree on things. I am a morally good person so I think that kind of god would just let me in.((He brought up quite a bit of Catholic theology and history (crusades) throughout the conversation))
Me: "Everyone without Jesus Christ is going to hell because we sinned against God and broke His law. A baptism or church attendance does not save. No one is innocent or good, we are all guilty. You can see that by looking at our world. We want to think that we are good, but that is not what the Bible says. We are all bent towards evil. That is why we need a redeemer. Someone who can pay our fine, which is Jesus, who is the only way. You talk about nations being wiped out in the Old Testament, but they did exactly what you are doing right now. You are proclaiming your own goodness and spitting in God's face by saying that you won't believe in Him and you don't need Him when He has shown you His glory through creation, conscience, and His Word."
He kind of skipped around, but then brought up his morals again so I asked another question.
Me: "The 10 Commandments are God's holy standard. That is where we get our morality as it is written on our hearts. Where do you get your stand of what is right and wrong?"
Taylor: "I believe a society determines what is right and wrong. Throughout time we have established better standards and morals to whatever fits that certain society."
Me: "So you are saying that it is only right to the person?"
Taylor: "No, the society."
Me: "So was the Nazi society right when they killed thousands of Jews or when terrorists bomb and crash planes in the name of Islam?"
Taylor: "Actually the Islam faith isn't brutal, it is really a religion of peace. In the Koran, which I have read, it says no where to actually kill the infidels, but to show them peace."
Me: "Then why does it say in Surah 9:5 - to kill the infidels...?"
Taylor: "Well, the Koran has contradictions just like the Bible."
Me: "The Koran does have many contradictions, but we already went over the Bible and it does not, but would you say that the Nazi's were right or wrong?"
Taylor: "I think it's wrong, but to them it is right."
Me: "Okay, so you are saying that there is no sense of absolute morality. It is solely based on a societies standard?"
Taylor: "Well, I don't believe in a supernatural moral code."
Me: "Alright, then you think child pornography is okay if a certain society says it is?"
Taylor: "No, I think it is wrong and I will speak out against it."
Me: "But if you were saying there is no standard for right and wrong outside of a society then it is "right" in a sense because that individual believes it to be."
Taylor: "I don't agree with it, but I just think there is no supernatural moral code."
Me: "So you are basically saying it is okay if someone believes it to be true and that there is no right and wrong. The Bible reveals to us God's standard of morality which is written on our hearts. Taylor, do you believe we all came from monkeys...?
Taylor: "Yes, we evolved. We can see similarities between different species. There is loads of evidence.
Me: "While there are similarities there are no transitional forms. There are huge holes in the evolutionary model. I know you are better than that and that you were uniquely created. I really don't believe you are just an animal."
Taylor: "We are all animals. If God is real then why can dolphins show affection and bears use logic like we do...(he used some other examples as well).
Me: "That has absolutely nothing to do with the existence of God besides the fact that He is creative in His creation."
Taylor: I'm sorry, I respect what your trying to do, but I just will not believe it. I just don't want to. When I was young I was told the story of Job and how God killed his children and took everything away from him."
(He knew this story very well and other theological principles in the Bible. It is unfortunate that many people like this know more about the Bible than many who proclaim to be Christians)
Taylor: That is awful and I don't understand how a loving God could do that.
Me: Don't end the story there. You didn't tell what God then did.
Taylor: Yeah, I know He gave Him more kids and stuff, but that still doesn't justify what He did just to prove a point.
Me: "I know to us it is hard to comprehend, but the fact is, is that we are the clay and He is the potter. The clay doesn't tell that potter how he wants to be made or tell the potter what to do. God's ways are His ways and they are perfect even if we can't understand. But we can see that the principle behind the story is that we go through trials and tribulations, but God is faithful. He rewarded Job for his faithfulness in the end more than before. If we focus on the emotional aspect of every instance then we lose the truth aspect and bigger picture."
Taylor: "I would rather go to hell than be in Heaven with God like that."
Me: "Taylor, I don't want that for you and you seem to not understand that hell is for eternity. It is the weeping and gnashing of teeth where the fire is never quenched and the worm never dies. Whether you believe it or not will change it."
Taylor: "Let me ask you this. What is your idea of hell?
Me: "It doesn't matter what my idea is about hell or any of this. What matters is what God's Word says which I told you. The Bible was written by more than 40 men of various occupational and cultural backgrounds, over 1,500 hundreds years in the making, throughout 3 continents, and it contains several fulfilled prophecies. It is the only truth that matters in the world and you may say you don't believe it or there is an error here or there, but it will not change the fact that it is God's Word."
Me: "Taylor, I understand that these facts I'm telling you are not going to convince you of anything. I know that, but I want you to think about what we have talked about and what if all this is true. Do you love life?"
Taylor: "Yes, I love life, but I wrote a paper in philosophy about how it would be better if we were never born because ignorance is bliss and there would be no pain and suffering. I used to study religion more, but now I am really into art. I write songs about love, the world, and other people. I really do love life though."
Taylor: "But listen, I really gotta go, but I'll let you have the last word after I say this. You are probably going to tell me that Jesus loves me so much and I would be crazy not to accept Him because of His love. But I like the way I live and I enjoy life. I'm a good person and I do good things. I won't go in a church and yell at someone because I disagree with them because I am a good person like that. I just don't want to worship a God who does the things He does in the Bible. I can't accept that."
Me: "I'm not going to tell you that Jesus loves you or to accept Him, because He doesn't need it, but the Bible does command that you repent and trust in Him. I really do care about you and I don't want to see you go to hell, seriously. I really just want you to consider what we talked about tonight. You may throw these away, but will you please take these and think about reading them?"
(I handed him 3 booklets, Save Yourself Some Pain, Why Christianity?, and Scientific Evidence Found in the Bible by Ray Comfort.
Taylor: "Yes, I'll take them"
Me: "Well, listen man. I really appreciated the conversation and you listening and dialoguing with me. I really enjoyed it and it is definitely healthy to talk about these things. Just check out that information please and have a great night because I know you love life and eternity is a long time to be wrong about all this."
And we parted ways. It never got heated or anything although he did jump to different topics when he could not respond to a certain point. The important part is that the law and Gospel was shared. I pray that the Lord unhardens his heart. He obviously knew there was a creator as he would get very emotional towards God when we discussed certain things. He brought up past experiences and more reasons why he did not like God, but Romans 1:18-19 kept ringing in my ears during the conversation. You could see him suppressing the truth when given to him of a holy, righteous, just, merciful, loving, Creator.
"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made." - Roans 1:18-20
The Bible is so true when it says that every man proclaims his own goodness. We may not all do it in the same way, but we do without the grace and redemption of Jesus Christ. The more I witness and walk with the Lord the more I am being able to apply and understand these amazing biblical truths.
All the other conversations in the night went excellent as well. However,I was let down by the many church goers who couldn't tell me how to get to Heaven or even what the Gospel is when I asked. A group of girls said that there were probably going to talk about the law and Gospel that was shared with them until 4 in the morning that night after our conversation! Even though I'm not sure if I am ever seeing conversion take place it does bring me joy to see people taking their eternal salvation and the things of God seriously whether it is a positive or negative experience to me. Please pray for everyone who got a tract and heard the Gospel!
Salvation is of the Lord, but He wants us to plant the seeds!
May God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Fatherhood and Evangelism
Life has been really busy as the Lord has graciously given me a new brother (in law) and a daughter in the last month so I haven't had much time to write as I have had in the past.
Having a daughter really didn't set in for me during the pregnancy, even though it literally did for my wife, until we went to the hospital. We have an almost 3 year old boy already and our daughter was just born on our anniversary weighing 10.5 pounds! My wife did a great job in giving birth to her! Praise God! Through the experience I have noticed that one of my strengths is that I don't worry very much about things when it comes to the serious stuff because I know that God is sovereign and in control. However, my weakness lies in sweating the small stuff. It's odd how that works out, because God is always in control of all of it.
I'm basically writing to talk a little about what has been going on and my reflections of being a father of two and evangelism. Honestly, my outlook on fatherhood hasn't changed much with the new addition of my family. When I found out I was having my boy almost 3 years ago I started researching, reading extensively, and listening to sermons on raising a godly son or daughter. I have always enjoyed teaching and working with children and I am extremely passionate about parenting because it is a calling and a God-given responsibility that should be embraced by every parent, especially the head of the family, which is the father.
I have definitely already made mistakes as a parent, but the biggest mistake when it comes to children is not admitting to them when you have wronged them, not prayerfully doing something about it, and not asking for forgiveness of the ones you have done it to. There has always been this cliche that a parent can't be wrong or especially let the child know, which is a great flaw in itself. Even though I have a toddler and infant I am beginning to see how serious, but joyous parenthood is meant to be, especially when done biblically. I've learned that the key to parenting doesn't start with the child, it starts with God and then your wife, or spouse. Many of my weaknesses or short comings are reflected in my handling of situations and treatment of my wife. A wise man once said if you want to know how a man really is then ask his wife. There is a a boat load of truth to that statement!
Through much prayer, reflection and study of scriptures my family has grown this past year. It is not a smooth process to establish certain rules or guidelines and go against most of what our culture says is acceptable, especially having grown up in it, but when you really step back and compare what is happening nowadays to what scripture really says and how things were in the last 100 years ago it really isn't all that surprising why we are where we are culturally today. I know the road ahead is going to be a difficult one for our family as we will be doing some things differently with our children, but the end result is for the glory of God and the best interest of our family in serving Christ.
On an evangelism note, I haven't got to go and witness anywhere due to my first job as a witness, being a leader for our family and partner to my wife. I still have to be humbled sometimes to realize that evangelism is important and everyone is to be doing it, but there are other responsibilities as well, which is how I lead and serve my family for Christ. I thank the Lord that he brought a (former) Mormon missionary who was questioning the existence of God and two Jehovah's Witness encounters to my house since I could not leave it much the during the last month.
I'm thankful for my wife, sister, father, and mother who understand how important spreading the Gospel is to me, or how important it is, period. My sister let me place a ton of tracts around at her wedding, which is a really cool and admirable thing of her to do. A lot of people and "Christians" are embarrassed by Gospel tracts, just what I've seen from my experience. My parents and wife also reinforce my efforts as well. I know that handing out tracts to people and witnessing publicly is not a popular thing to do at all, but there is more at stake than being socially acceptable, souls.
I was able to go and witness at my favorite fishing spot last night, the Harbor, and talk to many people concerning their eternal salvation. There were really great conversations, but I always tend to dwell on the one or two that don't go quite the way I want them to, but again, a Christian's responsibility is planting a seed of that which is the Gospel, no matter what the reaction is. If I go a week without sharing the Gospel with someone face to face then I find it extremely difficult to start back up, it's kind of like exercising! But by praying for the leading and strengthening of the Holy Spirit all things are possible.
So to wrap up, fatherhood is great, but I take it very seriously. The time we spend with our children is more important than sports, hobbies, TV, or anything else. Quality time comes from quantity time. The more time we spend with our children the more quality time and teachable moments there will be opportunities for. I have found that my biggest battle is not with the flesh, or Satan, but with wordiness. I think it is the most subtle of the three and the most prominent in our American culture, but that is a whole other topic for another day.
May God bless you and yours and thank you for reading!
In Christ,
Joey
Having a daughter really didn't set in for me during the pregnancy, even though it literally did for my wife, until we went to the hospital. We have an almost 3 year old boy already and our daughter was just born on our anniversary weighing 10.5 pounds! My wife did a great job in giving birth to her! Praise God! Through the experience I have noticed that one of my strengths is that I don't worry very much about things when it comes to the serious stuff because I know that God is sovereign and in control. However, my weakness lies in sweating the small stuff. It's odd how that works out, because God is always in control of all of it.
I'm basically writing to talk a little about what has been going on and my reflections of being a father of two and evangelism. Honestly, my outlook on fatherhood hasn't changed much with the new addition of my family. When I found out I was having my boy almost 3 years ago I started researching, reading extensively, and listening to sermons on raising a godly son or daughter. I have always enjoyed teaching and working with children and I am extremely passionate about parenting because it is a calling and a God-given responsibility that should be embraced by every parent, especially the head of the family, which is the father.
I have definitely already made mistakes as a parent, but the biggest mistake when it comes to children is not admitting to them when you have wronged them, not prayerfully doing something about it, and not asking for forgiveness of the ones you have done it to. There has always been this cliche that a parent can't be wrong or especially let the child know, which is a great flaw in itself. Even though I have a toddler and infant I am beginning to see how serious, but joyous parenthood is meant to be, especially when done biblically. I've learned that the key to parenting doesn't start with the child, it starts with God and then your wife, or spouse. Many of my weaknesses or short comings are reflected in my handling of situations and treatment of my wife. A wise man once said if you want to know how a man really is then ask his wife. There is a a boat load of truth to that statement!
Through much prayer, reflection and study of scriptures my family has grown this past year. It is not a smooth process to establish certain rules or guidelines and go against most of what our culture says is acceptable, especially having grown up in it, but when you really step back and compare what is happening nowadays to what scripture really says and how things were in the last 100 years ago it really isn't all that surprising why we are where we are culturally today. I know the road ahead is going to be a difficult one for our family as we will be doing some things differently with our children, but the end result is for the glory of God and the best interest of our family in serving Christ.
On an evangelism note, I haven't got to go and witness anywhere due to my first job as a witness, being a leader for our family and partner to my wife. I still have to be humbled sometimes to realize that evangelism is important and everyone is to be doing it, but there are other responsibilities as well, which is how I lead and serve my family for Christ. I thank the Lord that he brought a (former) Mormon missionary who was questioning the existence of God and two Jehovah's Witness encounters to my house since I could not leave it much the during the last month.
I'm thankful for my wife, sister, father, and mother who understand how important spreading the Gospel is to me, or how important it is, period. My sister let me place a ton of tracts around at her wedding, which is a really cool and admirable thing of her to do. A lot of people and "Christians" are embarrassed by Gospel tracts, just what I've seen from my experience. My parents and wife also reinforce my efforts as well. I know that handing out tracts to people and witnessing publicly is not a popular thing to do at all, but there is more at stake than being socially acceptable, souls.
I was able to go and witness at my favorite fishing spot last night, the Harbor, and talk to many people concerning their eternal salvation. There were really great conversations, but I always tend to dwell on the one or two that don't go quite the way I want them to, but again, a Christian's responsibility is planting a seed of that which is the Gospel, no matter what the reaction is. If I go a week without sharing the Gospel with someone face to face then I find it extremely difficult to start back up, it's kind of like exercising! But by praying for the leading and strengthening of the Holy Spirit all things are possible.
So to wrap up, fatherhood is great, but I take it very seriously. The time we spend with our children is more important than sports, hobbies, TV, or anything else. Quality time comes from quantity time. The more time we spend with our children the more quality time and teachable moments there will be opportunities for. I have found that my biggest battle is not with the flesh, or Satan, but with wordiness. I think it is the most subtle of the three and the most prominent in our American culture, but that is a whole other topic for another day.
May God bless you and yours and thank you for reading!
In Christ,
Joey
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Providence?
I often pray to the see the hand of God at work in life when it is already so obvious. Once I take a step back from the worldliness I am so susceptible to it's as if a veil is torn from my eyes. However, when I pray for something so much I sometimes lose hope over the request and it comes back and hits me like a ton of bricks! This is a great thing by the way!
My wife is pregnant and looks as if she is going to deliver any day now. We also have a toddler that I have to watch like a hawk, because as smart as he is, he gets into everything! This has hindered my evangelism efforts and I find myself frustrated at times, but my first obligation is serving God by being a leader and supporter for my family. I have prayed for balance over this since I became born again and the Lord has truly given me a greater peace over this issue.
Since I haven't been able to go out I have been talking to people on the internet and witnessing that way. Although, internet witnessing is very valuable and God can use it, I prefer talking to someone face to face when it concerns the things of God and their eternal salvation. Now I'm going to explain why I named this post "Providence".
The last couple of weeks I have been leading a Bible study at our house. Yesterday it just so happens to be our Bible study day and no one shows up so we don't have it. I hear someone knocking at the door and it is a pest control salesman trying to get me to switch services. I reluctantly picked up a tract off of my "tract table" by the door where I have a sign for people who enter our house to take tracts or different kinds of booklets or Bibles. So we both talked for a little while and I basically told him in a nice way that I'm probably not interested, but I would like his info. on it.
We were parting ways and I handed him a trillion dollar bill gospel tract. Usually people take them and walk off in a situation like that, which is what I expected him to do. But he started asking me about it and what it was. I told him it was a gospel tract and has a good message on the back, as I was making my way to go inside. (I wasn't prepared nor expecting to have a witnessing encounter). He then asked me what church I went to and I said that I currently do not go to a church, but I am a born again Christian. This is the shocking thing right here. He then told me that he is LDS (Mormon) and he used to be a missionary for years over in France. He doesn't really consider himself one anymore because he has been doubting the existence of God lately and hasn't been doing any good works.
He then asked me how do I know that there is truly a God because lately it has been on his mind a lot because he could die any day and he just doesn't know. This is one of those questions that every evangelist wants to hear and I don't hear someone earnestly ask it very often. We discussed how conscience, creation, and the Bible point to a Creator God. I then asked him if there is a God if he would be good enough to go to Heaven. He replied by saying, "a couple months ago I would have told you I was because of everything I was doing for the church, but now I don't think I would".
So we went through the law of God and the reality of hell along with who the person and deity of Christ is(what we were actually supposed to study at our Bible study that night). I explained the differences of LDS teachings and the Bible. He admitted that what I was saying makes sense, regarding faith and works. He asked me if I was 100% grace and I said yes, but here's the thing, because I knew what he was getting at. It is only by the grace of God that He saved me. There was nothing I could do to merit towards or for my salvation. You can't bribe a judge and you certainly can't bribe God. However, any true Christian saved by grace and changed by the power of God will produce works. Genuine faith without works is dead. A true faith will produce evidence of salvation through its works and fruit. If one is truly changed by God he/she will want to tell others and obey God's Word. Unfortunately, we live in a nation of hypocrisy.
We went through the gospel and talked about repentance and trust in Christ. How Christ is the only way and works cannot save us. I was impressed and touched that this individual asked about this because he told me that he really can't talk to his family and friends about his questions.
I am so thankful to God that he was so open to everything and seemed to grasp an understanding. This must have really been on his heart to boldly ask me what I believed the existence of God to be and how to be saved. I believe God put us in each others paths that evening and I let him know as well. He told me again that it is crazy because he had been thinking about these kind of things and really been struggling lately and didn't have anyone to talk to about it.
I emphasized that I care about him which is why I gave him the tract and was glad we got to talk. I also told him that eternity only has two destinations, not celestial, tellestial, terrestrial heavens, and outer darkness. Because God is so good, loving, and just that He will give sinners what they deserve, which is hell. He is also a righteous and holy judge and it is hard for us to comprehend the severity of what we think is "little sin" because His standard of morality is perfect. Ours is greatly flawed. People forget that God is Creator and we are creation.
Praise God for this experience. I know there are many who don't like gospel tracts, but God truly used it as an opener for this awesome encounter because I embarrassingly and sinfully wasn't planning on talking to Him about how he could be saved when he came to my door. I was uncomfortable (selfish) because I hadn't done it in quite a while and really wanted to just go inside. That is testimony of how much of a selfish sinner I am to this day and I thank the good Lord that He provides forgiveness and repentance when I mess up and sin against Him.
I want to emphasize though that if you have a loved one or friend who is of a different religion or has different beliefs than you, it is not always necessary to know everything about that religion. It is definitely helpful, but the true biblical gospel; by discussing where we stand with God and what sin actually is, which explains their need for the Savior, is and should be at the core of every witnessing encounter. The power of the Holy Spirit through the proclamation of the Gospel is what changes hearts, but again, apologetics and study is extremely useful in having some common ground when it comes to these kind of situations.
Please pray for my new friend Ryan and that the Lord would do a further work on His heart, because I believe with all of mine that He already is.
Thank you for reading and may God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey
My wife is pregnant and looks as if she is going to deliver any day now. We also have a toddler that I have to watch like a hawk, because as smart as he is, he gets into everything! This has hindered my evangelism efforts and I find myself frustrated at times, but my first obligation is serving God by being a leader and supporter for my family. I have prayed for balance over this since I became born again and the Lord has truly given me a greater peace over this issue.
Since I haven't been able to go out I have been talking to people on the internet and witnessing that way. Although, internet witnessing is very valuable and God can use it, I prefer talking to someone face to face when it concerns the things of God and their eternal salvation. Now I'm going to explain why I named this post "Providence".
The last couple of weeks I have been leading a Bible study at our house. Yesterday it just so happens to be our Bible study day and no one shows up so we don't have it. I hear someone knocking at the door and it is a pest control salesman trying to get me to switch services. I reluctantly picked up a tract off of my "tract table" by the door where I have a sign for people who enter our house to take tracts or different kinds of booklets or Bibles. So we both talked for a little while and I basically told him in a nice way that I'm probably not interested, but I would like his info. on it.
We were parting ways and I handed him a trillion dollar bill gospel tract. Usually people take them and walk off in a situation like that, which is what I expected him to do. But he started asking me about it and what it was. I told him it was a gospel tract and has a good message on the back, as I was making my way to go inside. (I wasn't prepared nor expecting to have a witnessing encounter). He then asked me what church I went to and I said that I currently do not go to a church, but I am a born again Christian. This is the shocking thing right here. He then told me that he is LDS (Mormon) and he used to be a missionary for years over in France. He doesn't really consider himself one anymore because he has been doubting the existence of God lately and hasn't been doing any good works.
He then asked me how do I know that there is truly a God because lately it has been on his mind a lot because he could die any day and he just doesn't know. This is one of those questions that every evangelist wants to hear and I don't hear someone earnestly ask it very often. We discussed how conscience, creation, and the Bible point to a Creator God. I then asked him if there is a God if he would be good enough to go to Heaven. He replied by saying, "a couple months ago I would have told you I was because of everything I was doing for the church, but now I don't think I would".
So we went through the law of God and the reality of hell along with who the person and deity of Christ is(what we were actually supposed to study at our Bible study that night). I explained the differences of LDS teachings and the Bible. He admitted that what I was saying makes sense, regarding faith and works. He asked me if I was 100% grace and I said yes, but here's the thing, because I knew what he was getting at. It is only by the grace of God that He saved me. There was nothing I could do to merit towards or for my salvation. You can't bribe a judge and you certainly can't bribe God. However, any true Christian saved by grace and changed by the power of God will produce works. Genuine faith without works is dead. A true faith will produce evidence of salvation through its works and fruit. If one is truly changed by God he/she will want to tell others and obey God's Word. Unfortunately, we live in a nation of hypocrisy.
We went through the gospel and talked about repentance and trust in Christ. How Christ is the only way and works cannot save us. I was impressed and touched that this individual asked about this because he told me that he really can't talk to his family and friends about his questions.
I am so thankful to God that he was so open to everything and seemed to grasp an understanding. This must have really been on his heart to boldly ask me what I believed the existence of God to be and how to be saved. I believe God put us in each others paths that evening and I let him know as well. He told me again that it is crazy because he had been thinking about these kind of things and really been struggling lately and didn't have anyone to talk to about it.
I emphasized that I care about him which is why I gave him the tract and was glad we got to talk. I also told him that eternity only has two destinations, not celestial, tellestial, terrestrial heavens, and outer darkness. Because God is so good, loving, and just that He will give sinners what they deserve, which is hell. He is also a righteous and holy judge and it is hard for us to comprehend the severity of what we think is "little sin" because His standard of morality is perfect. Ours is greatly flawed. People forget that God is Creator and we are creation.
Praise God for this experience. I know there are many who don't like gospel tracts, but God truly used it as an opener for this awesome encounter because I embarrassingly and sinfully wasn't planning on talking to Him about how he could be saved when he came to my door. I was uncomfortable (selfish) because I hadn't done it in quite a while and really wanted to just go inside. That is testimony of how much of a selfish sinner I am to this day and I thank the good Lord that He provides forgiveness and repentance when I mess up and sin against Him.
I want to emphasize though that if you have a loved one or friend who is of a different religion or has different beliefs than you, it is not always necessary to know everything about that religion. It is definitely helpful, but the true biblical gospel; by discussing where we stand with God and what sin actually is, which explains their need for the Savior, is and should be at the core of every witnessing encounter. The power of the Holy Spirit through the proclamation of the Gospel is what changes hearts, but again, apologetics and study is extremely useful in having some common ground when it comes to these kind of situations.
Please pray for my new friend Ryan and that the Lord would do a further work on His heart, because I believe with all of mine that He already is.
Thank you for reading and may God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey
Saturday, May 29, 2010
The Faith Dilemma
I believe there is a huge dilemma in our post modern American culture especially as I talk to more and more people along with what I see in the media. There is this assumption that any faith as long as you have it is a good thing. Whether it be faith in your church, god, organization, aspiration, or anything else. The atheist or agnostic may tend to disagree with me, but I will admit that they have more faith (well blind faith) than I do. To believe that nothing created everything or to say "we don't know what or where creation came from" is to deny common and in depth evidence to the claim of biblical Christianity and a Creator God. To me that takes a huge amount of blind faith to think anything otherwise could be responsible when there is no such reliable evidence. It is nothing simply more than rebellion and an excuse to justify sin.
The truth is, is that faith in the wrong direction is deadly. No one will admit that different religions are wrong anymore. There is this assumption that if you disagree with someone regarding their religion and be accepting or even embracing of it then you are being loving. Now don't get me wrong, I am not saying one is to go on a witch hunt persecuting those with different beliefs. Before I get deeper into this please realize this blog is for those who call themselves Christians. Acceptance is a tricky word and please don't take it out of context when I use it in the way I did. Can I accept that someone is an atheist and converse with them, yep. Can I eat lunch with a Buddhist and be friendly and generally care for that person, of course! What I am talking about by acceptance in the above is the kind of acceptance that you accept that their religion will get them to Heaven or is okay for them as long as they are happy. You accept that you don't have a responsibility to share with them the one true way despite the repercussions on your relationship because their religion works for them. That is the acceptance which I don't think a true Christian should ever have.
If we call ourselves Christians and don't realize that Christ is the only way then examine yourself to see if you are in the faith. Jesus Christ is the ONLY way. Contrary to what other religions and sources say you have to know the Son to know the Father. That is comforting for me, but scary because there are so many out there who don't. Do you not realize this? If you do then ask yourself what are you going to do about it? Are you going to sit back and accept the fact that someone is literally on the highway to hell or are you going to share the greatest news that saved you from hell? If you have no desire to share the gospel then there is either a lack of true love for people or you yourself may not be saved. This is a huge deal.
I have written about this before, but find a good biblical gospel tract. www.livingwaters.com has great ones. If you don't feel comfortable talking to someone about the gospel you can hand one to them or put it in a place you know they will find it. You can even witness to people on the internet! Being Christians we need to go out and share the good news, biblically. It is a shame and makes me question many peoples salvation when they claim they are saved by grace, but have absolutely nothing to show for it except maybe a nice demeanor about them. Several religions have the works based outlook backwards while modern Christianity for the most part has none. Good works are the evidence of our salvation, not the means. Please, I beg of you to go share your faith because anything outside of the repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is fully God and fully man, leads to hell, an everlasting torment and punishment for sinning against a holy, loving, righteous, just God who provided a way for you through His Son.
I believe there are 4 reasons why people don't share the Gospel.
1. They are selfish.
2. They aren't confident in what they believe.
3. They don't know how.
4. They are scared.
#1 and #2 may reveal that one may not even be saved to be begin with if those are true. #3 is an excuse that can be easily overcome and #4 really ties in with #1 if you think about it. There are plenty of resources, including the best one of all, the Bible, on how to share the Gospel. If you have questions about it shoot me an e-mail and would love to talk to you and help you out.
I got off topic a little bit, but let me reiterate that all paths do not lead to Heaven. They do however lead to God...and judgment. Being a good person will not save anyone because there is not one who is good, especially me. Just having faith in anything will not save you. It doesn't matter what one believes, it matters what is true. Belief never creates genuine truth, however truth creates genuine belief. And that one truth is God's Word revealed in the 66 books of the Bible, not a church, person in power, "religious" figure, organization or any other "religion" for that matter.
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." - John 14:6
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." - Matthew 7:13
The narrow road that leads to life is Jesus Christ. It's what He died for and 11 of His 12 disciples and many, many, many others are martyred today for.
God bless you and yours.
In Christ,
Joey Acker
The truth is, is that faith in the wrong direction is deadly. No one will admit that different religions are wrong anymore. There is this assumption that if you disagree with someone regarding their religion and be accepting or even embracing of it then you are being loving. Now don't get me wrong, I am not saying one is to go on a witch hunt persecuting those with different beliefs. Before I get deeper into this please realize this blog is for those who call themselves Christians. Acceptance is a tricky word and please don't take it out of context when I use it in the way I did. Can I accept that someone is an atheist and converse with them, yep. Can I eat lunch with a Buddhist and be friendly and generally care for that person, of course! What I am talking about by acceptance in the above is the kind of acceptance that you accept that their religion will get them to Heaven or is okay for them as long as they are happy. You accept that you don't have a responsibility to share with them the one true way despite the repercussions on your relationship because their religion works for them. That is the acceptance which I don't think a true Christian should ever have.
If we call ourselves Christians and don't realize that Christ is the only way then examine yourself to see if you are in the faith. Jesus Christ is the ONLY way. Contrary to what other religions and sources say you have to know the Son to know the Father. That is comforting for me, but scary because there are so many out there who don't. Do you not realize this? If you do then ask yourself what are you going to do about it? Are you going to sit back and accept the fact that someone is literally on the highway to hell or are you going to share the greatest news that saved you from hell? If you have no desire to share the gospel then there is either a lack of true love for people or you yourself may not be saved. This is a huge deal.
I have written about this before, but find a good biblical gospel tract. www.livingwaters.com has great ones. If you don't feel comfortable talking to someone about the gospel you can hand one to them or put it in a place you know they will find it. You can even witness to people on the internet! Being Christians we need to go out and share the good news, biblically. It is a shame and makes me question many peoples salvation when they claim they are saved by grace, but have absolutely nothing to show for it except maybe a nice demeanor about them. Several religions have the works based outlook backwards while modern Christianity for the most part has none. Good works are the evidence of our salvation, not the means. Please, I beg of you to go share your faith because anything outside of the repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is fully God and fully man, leads to hell, an everlasting torment and punishment for sinning against a holy, loving, righteous, just God who provided a way for you through His Son.
I believe there are 4 reasons why people don't share the Gospel.
1. They are selfish.
2. They aren't confident in what they believe.
3. They don't know how.
4. They are scared.
#1 and #2 may reveal that one may not even be saved to be begin with if those are true. #3 is an excuse that can be easily overcome and #4 really ties in with #1 if you think about it. There are plenty of resources, including the best one of all, the Bible, on how to share the Gospel. If you have questions about it shoot me an e-mail and would love to talk to you and help you out.
I got off topic a little bit, but let me reiterate that all paths do not lead to Heaven. They do however lead to God...and judgment. Being a good person will not save anyone because there is not one who is good, especially me. Just having faith in anything will not save you. It doesn't matter what one believes, it matters what is true. Belief never creates genuine truth, however truth creates genuine belief. And that one truth is God's Word revealed in the 66 books of the Bible, not a church, person in power, "religious" figure, organization or any other "religion" for that matter.
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." - John 14:6
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." - Matthew 7:13
The narrow road that leads to life is Jesus Christ. It's what He died for and 11 of His 12 disciples and many, many, many others are martyred today for.
God bless you and yours.
In Christ,
Joey Acker
Saturday, May 1, 2010
His way is better
Last week I didn't get to go out and witness around the time or day I wanted. I was a little discouraged because the usual large crowd wouldn't be around and things weren't going exactly my way. Often, I forget that God's way is ALWAYS better than mine though. : )
So I arrived at my location pretty late and didn't expect to see very many people around, which I didn't, but prayed that my efforts wouldn't be fruitless. When talking to people, handing out tracts, preaching, we have to always keep in mind that it's not the size of the crowd, how many tracts we hand out, but rather who is in the crowd that God is going to use. What I mean is I could hand out thousands of tract in my life, which I have, and not ever see one person come to repentance and trust in Christ. I could preach to hundreds of people and not see one convert. Does that mean my efforts were in vain? No, because as Christians we are to share our faith regardless of the outcome. Evangelism is all about planting seeds.
I have met individuals that boast over how many people they have "lead to Christ" and list all the things they done, but in essence what matters is that we are wholeheartedly serving God and His command of the Great Commission. If you pass out one tract in your life time or share your faith with one person then God may use that and you are being obedient. Now is that an excuse not to do it again, no. I am emphasizing that we must not be discouraged when we compare our zeal to others unless we feel a godly conviction that we should be doing more for Christ.
This isn't very popular in the evangelical world, but I never pray a prayer with someone after I witness to them unless they ask because I do not want to give them false assurance that they are now saved. There is no one on this earth who can pronounce someone saved and there is no certain prayer or person who can save you except Jesus Christ. There are so many people who have been deceived because they felt that they were "saved" because they prayed a prayer or got dunked in some water. We honestly do not and will not know how many people we lead to Christ because that is a work of the Holy Spirit. Our job is to lead people to the biblical gospel by showing them their need for the Savior and the good news of what Christ did for them.
Now as I walked around I did have the pleasure of having two encounters. I talked with two girls and it was a very good conversation. I believe they understood and they were glad that we talked. The next conversation lasted over an hour with 2 guys and what appeared to be their 2 dates. We went through the good person test and they claimed they were Christians the whole time blaspheming the name of God. However, when we got done they started asking questions about Nostradamus, 2012, why God lets bad things happen, how do we really know that God exists? By the way, I LOVE answering questions because I love discussing these kind of things and if I don't know the answer I will find it for you if at all possible!
One of the individuals was a pastor's daughter, but unfortunately did not have a grasp on what salvation is. Now when I say they don't have a grasp on salvation I mean that someone who is truly a born again Christian will know the gospel and be able to tell someone how to be saved, because how then could that person be? If your salvation didn't involve repentance of sin...then there is something very wrong my friend. Repentance and trust in Christ = Belief. They are two sides of the same coin, not a work that you can do to earn it. Many have tried to say that you can have your cake and eat it too, which is EXTREMELY popular in religion. However, there is no such thing as a carnal Christian, but all who are born again continue to battle sin and grow in sanctification because of what Christ did and our love and reverence for Him. If you claim the title of Christian, but love your sin then please examine yourself to see if you are in the faith. - 2 Corinthians 13:5
Now back to the encounter! I unfortunately see this often and usually the first thing they tell me when we discuss their standing with God is that they are a pastor's daughter/son. One claimed to be "Cathelcism" (Catholic) and this one guy who kept trying to discuss politics and history with me said he was as well, but he corrected her pronunciation. I truly believe that the Lord guided the long conversation that we had because their questions were very sincere and the one girl who was Catholic told me that being in church no one ever answered these questions for her or really explained how to be saved. At first she said she went through confirmation so she thought she was saved, but didn't really understand it. The others agreed as well.
This breaks my heart, and I'm not just saying that because she was raised Catholic. I don't care if you call yourself Catholic, Baptist, or whatever. If you don't have repentance and trust in Christ alone for your salvation then you are just as lost as the rest no matter what title you go by. She genuinely wanted to know how we really stand with God, and if He even exists, and how we can be saved if He is real. I was so blessed by this encounter because they wanted some booklets on Christianity, Science in the Bible, and Salvation that I usually don't carry around with me, but I did that night.
I told them that we were talking for a reason and that I enjoyed talking with them and explained that I really did care about them. I also always try to end by reminding people that 150,000 people die everyday and we don't know when we will and to seriously consider where you will spend eternity. At the end of the conversation they all thanked me and the girl told that me that she truly believes that this would change her life. I pray with all my heart that it does. I've never talked with someone who I believed to be so sincere, but again, we just never know. I would greatly appreciate prayers for those people and that more laborers will rise to serve in the Great Commission and win souls for Christ. Maybe it's you reading this right now. If so, there are great resources at www.livingwaters.com!
Thank you and may God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey Acker
www.needGod.com
So I arrived at my location pretty late and didn't expect to see very many people around, which I didn't, but prayed that my efforts wouldn't be fruitless. When talking to people, handing out tracts, preaching, we have to always keep in mind that it's not the size of the crowd, how many tracts we hand out, but rather who is in the crowd that God is going to use. What I mean is I could hand out thousands of tract in my life, which I have, and not ever see one person come to repentance and trust in Christ. I could preach to hundreds of people and not see one convert. Does that mean my efforts were in vain? No, because as Christians we are to share our faith regardless of the outcome. Evangelism is all about planting seeds.
I have met individuals that boast over how many people they have "lead to Christ" and list all the things they done, but in essence what matters is that we are wholeheartedly serving God and His command of the Great Commission. If you pass out one tract in your life time or share your faith with one person then God may use that and you are being obedient. Now is that an excuse not to do it again, no. I am emphasizing that we must not be discouraged when we compare our zeal to others unless we feel a godly conviction that we should be doing more for Christ.
This isn't very popular in the evangelical world, but I never pray a prayer with someone after I witness to them unless they ask because I do not want to give them false assurance that they are now saved. There is no one on this earth who can pronounce someone saved and there is no certain prayer or person who can save you except Jesus Christ. There are so many people who have been deceived because they felt that they were "saved" because they prayed a prayer or got dunked in some water. We honestly do not and will not know how many people we lead to Christ because that is a work of the Holy Spirit. Our job is to lead people to the biblical gospel by showing them their need for the Savior and the good news of what Christ did for them.
Now as I walked around I did have the pleasure of having two encounters. I talked with two girls and it was a very good conversation. I believe they understood and they were glad that we talked. The next conversation lasted over an hour with 2 guys and what appeared to be their 2 dates. We went through the good person test and they claimed they were Christians the whole time blaspheming the name of God. However, when we got done they started asking questions about Nostradamus, 2012, why God lets bad things happen, how do we really know that God exists? By the way, I LOVE answering questions because I love discussing these kind of things and if I don't know the answer I will find it for you if at all possible!
One of the individuals was a pastor's daughter, but unfortunately did not have a grasp on what salvation is. Now when I say they don't have a grasp on salvation I mean that someone who is truly a born again Christian will know the gospel and be able to tell someone how to be saved, because how then could that person be? If your salvation didn't involve repentance of sin...then there is something very wrong my friend. Repentance and trust in Christ = Belief. They are two sides of the same coin, not a work that you can do to earn it. Many have tried to say that you can have your cake and eat it too, which is EXTREMELY popular in religion. However, there is no such thing as a carnal Christian, but all who are born again continue to battle sin and grow in sanctification because of what Christ did and our love and reverence for Him. If you claim the title of Christian, but love your sin then please examine yourself to see if you are in the faith. - 2 Corinthians 13:5
Now back to the encounter! I unfortunately see this often and usually the first thing they tell me when we discuss their standing with God is that they are a pastor's daughter/son. One claimed to be "Cathelcism" (Catholic) and this one guy who kept trying to discuss politics and history with me said he was as well, but he corrected her pronunciation. I truly believe that the Lord guided the long conversation that we had because their questions were very sincere and the one girl who was Catholic told me that being in church no one ever answered these questions for her or really explained how to be saved. At first she said she went through confirmation so she thought she was saved, but didn't really understand it. The others agreed as well.
This breaks my heart, and I'm not just saying that because she was raised Catholic. I don't care if you call yourself Catholic, Baptist, or whatever. If you don't have repentance and trust in Christ alone for your salvation then you are just as lost as the rest no matter what title you go by. She genuinely wanted to know how we really stand with God, and if He even exists, and how we can be saved if He is real. I was so blessed by this encounter because they wanted some booklets on Christianity, Science in the Bible, and Salvation that I usually don't carry around with me, but I did that night.
I told them that we were talking for a reason and that I enjoyed talking with them and explained that I really did care about them. I also always try to end by reminding people that 150,000 people die everyday and we don't know when we will and to seriously consider where you will spend eternity. At the end of the conversation they all thanked me and the girl told that me that she truly believes that this would change her life. I pray with all my heart that it does. I've never talked with someone who I believed to be so sincere, but again, we just never know. I would greatly appreciate prayers for those people and that more laborers will rise to serve in the Great Commission and win souls for Christ. Maybe it's you reading this right now. If so, there are great resources at www.livingwaters.com!
Thank you and may God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey Acker
www.needGod.com
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Feel Good Christianity?
This blog today is my response to many conversations and encounters I have had in person and on Facebook.
I am going to say some hard things, but please bare with me as it is always in love. I know that many do not agree with the way I do evangelism, or with the way I even present the Bible or the gospel. A lot of people do not support open air preaching or street evangelism either. As DL Moody said, "I like the way I am doing it better than the way you are not doing it", to a lady who criticized his methods. I have brothers and sisters in Christ who are in the same boat and I relate as well. One cannot use the answer because Jesus did not do it that way either, because He did and so did the apostles. Making friends with someone before sharing the gospel with them is not a good excuse. I don't think they would appreciate it if they knew you had an agenda to be there friend just so you could give them the gospel. Souls are at stake and we never know when time will run out for us or the lost.
The problem is that Christianity to many has become a category, title, or means of life enhancement. People are not taking God/Jesus Christ seriously. I see this from people throwing God's name around like He is their little buddy who sits on there shoulder and turns his head or laughs whenever they sin. I don't spend much time on FB other when I am posting something, but when I get a friend request I check their profile to look at their religious views. Many times I see them say, "I love God! Christian, Born again Christian, Jesus Rules! and other sayings signifying that they are indeed a Christian, but their profile says other wise. It is filled with cussing, fans of things a Christian probably shouldn't be fans of, and distasteful pictures. I also see this when people tell me they are "major Christians" after they just got done blaspheming His name, cussing, and wearing clothes or lack of that are sure to make a true brother or sister in Christ to stumble. That is heartbreaking, but a big truth in this country. I am looking at their fruit, not making unrighteous judgment.
I have seen people who defend soft preaching and half-truths and attack those who preach the whole truth. I have heard things such as, "well Jesus's message was radical for His time period." That is true, but at the same time if preached biblically it is radical for ours as well. Go out on the street and preach biblically and you will find that out quick. Do not down play the seriousness and the offensiveness of the gospel. It is the best news ever, but it does offend. If it doesn't then something is probably wrong and you are only having a bunch of people having their ears tickled. A half truth is a lie.
There are also many that use the famous "what would Jesus do" when trying to defend their radical political views or justify sin as well, treating the person of Christ like He was a hippy or something. When I encourage people to read or study their Bible and the attributes of God/Jesus Christ during a discussion that is when they pull the "well I don't believe everything in the Bible." My friend, if one does not believe the whole Word of God then how could you possible be a Christian. Examine yourself to see whether you are in the faith. 2 Cor. 13:5 We cannot pick and choose what we like and don't like in the Bible and create our own god. That is idolatry. - 2 Commandment.
If you are a Christian ask yourself these vital questions. What does one have to do to be saved? What is one even saved from? One isn't saved from nothingness, that is a lie. What is the gospel? These are crucial questions that many do not have the answer to, but they should know if they have truly been born again.
I have also seen people knock those who study theology, Bible and the history of Christianity. What is that all about?? How can studying God, His word and history related to Him ever be a bad thing? Have you ever sat through a church service and felt convicted at what the pastor said and felt like he was talking directly to you. That is probably because he was using scripture. The Word of God does that to us!
The defenses I have heard is that if one is constantly studying then they are not truly experiencing Christ. People, that is one BIG way that we do experience Christ. Through His word, knowledge, and service to Him is how we grow. The truth will set you free, not the tingles or goosebumps of a catchy worship song. I am not saying worship is bad, but many look to worship service as their only experience with God. Putting feelings and experiences over truth is dangerous. We have God's completed Word for a reason. Not everyone who studies it is a Christian, but I can't imagine any genuine Christian criticizing those who do.
Hell is real and should not be ignored. I am not talking about hell-fire preaching here, but I am saying that we should all know what we deserve and are in danger of. Not to scare us although it is needed for some, but definitely to warn us and have knowledge of what exactly Christ saved us from to those who will repent and trust Him. This is an extremely important doctrine and many do not like it which is why we have cults like the Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormonism, unfortunately there are many evangelical churches and denominations now that are doing damage, because they are blatantly ignoring it. The saddest part is that the cults usually are more zealous and knowledgeable of the Bible than most "Christians" even though they base everything that comes from it on a man's interpretation rather than taking it in context.
Many will disagree with me on this, but the purpose of building a church is not to attract a certain group of people. It is to be a BIBLICAL church and whoever comes, will come. If one is only trying to attract youth to come to their church or higher income citizens isn't that discrimination in a sense? I know there are jobs at stake, but if one is truly Christian the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ is more important than anything worldly. And there are biblical churches out there.
The bottom line is that there are lazy people who are either Christian or calling themselves Christian. I don't know how else to put it. If you won't study your Bible then that is laziness which fuels ignorance. Sin gets in the way sometimes, but we should always have that desire. If you know more about your job then you do your religion then that shows what your priorities are. We will sit and watch TV for hours, but pop open the Bible for 5 minutes to make ourselves feel better for doing our daily holy "thing" or as many call devotional. Again, devotionals are great, but don't use them as an excuse for your conscience's sake.
The ones who do these things are probably not the ones who will read my blog, because I am pretty sure I have already been stereotyped as a crazed radical as I see many people take me off their friends list when I post something from the Bible or even about how I love my wife...that is kind of weird to me. If you are one of these people though, please, please study His word and take God seriously because He is almighty and powerful and we will have to get an account for every word, thought, and deed one day. He is our judge and if you have not repented and put your trust in Him then you are in danger of hell.
God is love, but He is so loving and just that He will cast all sinners into the lake of fire for eternity. Rev. 21:8 He provided the way for you through His only Son, Jesus Christ 2010 years ago to suffer and die on the cross and then rose from the dead 3 days later forever defeating death. He is the only living God who sits in Heaven right now on the thrown and He commands that you repent, meaning change your mind-turn from your sin, and put your trust in Him alone. He will change your heart. You will love the things He loves and hate the things He hates. You will no longer dive into sin, but you will fall and truly hate it when you do. That is difference. He is the almighty King and all that is good, holy, and righteous.
If your Christianity is too comfortable then it may not be biblical Christianity. I am confident in my eternal salvation, but I am constantly at war with my flesh, Satan, and worldliness.
Thank you so much for reading and may God bless you and yours!
Have a great Resurrection Day!
In Christ,
Joey Acker
I am going to say some hard things, but please bare with me as it is always in love. I know that many do not agree with the way I do evangelism, or with the way I even present the Bible or the gospel. A lot of people do not support open air preaching or street evangelism either. As DL Moody said, "I like the way I am doing it better than the way you are not doing it", to a lady who criticized his methods. I have brothers and sisters in Christ who are in the same boat and I relate as well. One cannot use the answer because Jesus did not do it that way either, because He did and so did the apostles. Making friends with someone before sharing the gospel with them is not a good excuse. I don't think they would appreciate it if they knew you had an agenda to be there friend just so you could give them the gospel. Souls are at stake and we never know when time will run out for us or the lost.
The problem is that Christianity to many has become a category, title, or means of life enhancement. People are not taking God/Jesus Christ seriously. I see this from people throwing God's name around like He is their little buddy who sits on there shoulder and turns his head or laughs whenever they sin. I don't spend much time on FB other when I am posting something, but when I get a friend request I check their profile to look at their religious views. Many times I see them say, "I love God! Christian, Born again Christian, Jesus Rules! and other sayings signifying that they are indeed a Christian, but their profile says other wise. It is filled with cussing, fans of things a Christian probably shouldn't be fans of, and distasteful pictures. I also see this when people tell me they are "major Christians" after they just got done blaspheming His name, cussing, and wearing clothes or lack of that are sure to make a true brother or sister in Christ to stumble. That is heartbreaking, but a big truth in this country. I am looking at their fruit, not making unrighteous judgment.
I have seen people who defend soft preaching and half-truths and attack those who preach the whole truth. I have heard things such as, "well Jesus's message was radical for His time period." That is true, but at the same time if preached biblically it is radical for ours as well. Go out on the street and preach biblically and you will find that out quick. Do not down play the seriousness and the offensiveness of the gospel. It is the best news ever, but it does offend. If it doesn't then something is probably wrong and you are only having a bunch of people having their ears tickled. A half truth is a lie.
There are also many that use the famous "what would Jesus do" when trying to defend their radical political views or justify sin as well, treating the person of Christ like He was a hippy or something. When I encourage people to read or study their Bible and the attributes of God/Jesus Christ during a discussion that is when they pull the "well I don't believe everything in the Bible." My friend, if one does not believe the whole Word of God then how could you possible be a Christian. Examine yourself to see whether you are in the faith. 2 Cor. 13:5 We cannot pick and choose what we like and don't like in the Bible and create our own god. That is idolatry. - 2 Commandment.
If you are a Christian ask yourself these vital questions. What does one have to do to be saved? What is one even saved from? One isn't saved from nothingness, that is a lie. What is the gospel? These are crucial questions that many do not have the answer to, but they should know if they have truly been born again.
I have also seen people knock those who study theology, Bible and the history of Christianity. What is that all about?? How can studying God, His word and history related to Him ever be a bad thing? Have you ever sat through a church service and felt convicted at what the pastor said and felt like he was talking directly to you. That is probably because he was using scripture. The Word of God does that to us!
The defenses I have heard is that if one is constantly studying then they are not truly experiencing Christ. People, that is one BIG way that we do experience Christ. Through His word, knowledge, and service to Him is how we grow. The truth will set you free, not the tingles or goosebumps of a catchy worship song. I am not saying worship is bad, but many look to worship service as their only experience with God. Putting feelings and experiences over truth is dangerous. We have God's completed Word for a reason. Not everyone who studies it is a Christian, but I can't imagine any genuine Christian criticizing those who do.
Hell is real and should not be ignored. I am not talking about hell-fire preaching here, but I am saying that we should all know what we deserve and are in danger of. Not to scare us although it is needed for some, but definitely to warn us and have knowledge of what exactly Christ saved us from to those who will repent and trust Him. This is an extremely important doctrine and many do not like it which is why we have cults like the Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormonism, unfortunately there are many evangelical churches and denominations now that are doing damage, because they are blatantly ignoring it. The saddest part is that the cults usually are more zealous and knowledgeable of the Bible than most "Christians" even though they base everything that comes from it on a man's interpretation rather than taking it in context.
Many will disagree with me on this, but the purpose of building a church is not to attract a certain group of people. It is to be a BIBLICAL church and whoever comes, will come. If one is only trying to attract youth to come to their church or higher income citizens isn't that discrimination in a sense? I know there are jobs at stake, but if one is truly Christian the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ is more important than anything worldly. And there are biblical churches out there.
The bottom line is that there are lazy people who are either Christian or calling themselves Christian. I don't know how else to put it. If you won't study your Bible then that is laziness which fuels ignorance. Sin gets in the way sometimes, but we should always have that desire. If you know more about your job then you do your religion then that shows what your priorities are. We will sit and watch TV for hours, but pop open the Bible for 5 minutes to make ourselves feel better for doing our daily holy "thing" or as many call devotional. Again, devotionals are great, but don't use them as an excuse for your conscience's sake.
The ones who do these things are probably not the ones who will read my blog, because I am pretty sure I have already been stereotyped as a crazed radical as I see many people take me off their friends list when I post something from the Bible or even about how I love my wife...that is kind of weird to me. If you are one of these people though, please, please study His word and take God seriously because He is almighty and powerful and we will have to get an account for every word, thought, and deed one day. He is our judge and if you have not repented and put your trust in Him then you are in danger of hell.
God is love, but He is so loving and just that He will cast all sinners into the lake of fire for eternity. Rev. 21:8 He provided the way for you through His only Son, Jesus Christ 2010 years ago to suffer and die on the cross and then rose from the dead 3 days later forever defeating death. He is the only living God who sits in Heaven right now on the thrown and He commands that you repent, meaning change your mind-turn from your sin, and put your trust in Him alone. He will change your heart. You will love the things He loves and hate the things He hates. You will no longer dive into sin, but you will fall and truly hate it when you do. That is difference. He is the almighty King and all that is good, holy, and righteous.
If your Christianity is too comfortable then it may not be biblical Christianity. I am confident in my eternal salvation, but I am constantly at war with my flesh, Satan, and worldliness.
Thank you so much for reading and may God bless you and yours!
Have a great Resurrection Day!
In Christ,
Joey Acker
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Be Careful What You Pray For...
All week I have been praying for an encounter that is different, that I would really be able to reach someone who was evident of needing ministering or the gospel. I know many of the people I talk to are in need, but a lot of times I don't see any opposition. Trust me, I know there is, but I don't see it much. I don't want opposition by any means, but it does let you know that you are in the battle. The battle of truth that is and I believe that evidence is needed at times.
I felt very nervous driving to my usual spot last night and even as I walked towards my destination when I got there. I couldn't really explain the feeling since I am usually semi-comfortable in the environment. As I walked around I saw a group of what appeared to be a group of late teenagers or early 20's smoking way off by themselves by the lighthouse. I was reluctant at first, usually I am with my first encounter, but I prayed and proceeded on. Some of the individuals looked like the typical "I hate the world and am desperately trying to make a statement with my appearance." As I gave them the tracts I asked them what do they think is in the after-life.
This turned into a more than a half hour conversation so I'll try to sum it up. Two of the guys were pretty quiet until they wanted to chime in agreeing with their "Pagan" friend. I say that because the girl that was with them told me that she was Pagan and she can't say who goes where or if there is even anything. The other boy who spoke up a lot was raised baptist and was currently on a philosophical journey for truth. He claimed that because someone told him at a church camp that all Islams would go to hell and that he was baptized twice without any results he no longer embraced "Christianity." He was a very intelligent individual and I can say that I genuinely enjoyed our conversation together. He actually wound up defending Christianity to an extent to the girl who insistently claimed that if she can't see something, she can't believe it.
I did get through the good person test, but some of these people were really searching for answers and really wanted to get their jabs in at Christianity. I told her that the majority of our country's Christians are hypocrites. She used that against me saying that how can I say that about anyone. That is when I explained that Jesus Christ says in the Bible that you will know them by their fruit. If you disagree with me then look at who is in our office and what our media consists of. There are missionaries from other countries now trying to evangelize our country! She also said that the Bible has been twisted over time and compared it to the DaVinci Code. For everyone who says fictional books can't influence...well I'm telling you right now that they can and they do. This isn't the first time I have had someone use the DaVinci Code to try to disprove the validity of the Bible.
I normally don't get into apologetics much, but there is a rare time and a place for it in witnessing and this was it. The girl was getting really frustrated when I explained that there is evidence of a Creator because since there is a creation there must be a Creator, we have a God-given conscience and God's word. There also has to be truth because there has to be a standard of morality, but there is always a point in this kind of conversation where those who attack the Bible are pinned into a corner when the discussion of morality comes into place. Her defense was that she didn't believe we have a soul and that something didn't have to create everything. Her friends saw the foolishness of this claim as well. I really felt bad for her because I didn't believe she didn't believe there wasn't a God. I really think she hated Him for something. It was like watching and listening to a disobedient child.
For a minute they were trying to say there isn't a God because of Haiti and "bad things" that happen. I told them that what we think is good may not be God's idea of good and that is something we cannot understand or even accurately question. The bottom line is the whole human race isn't deserving of anything but punishment for sinning against a holy righteous God. No one can say they know why Haiti happened, but God will get glory regardless. I know that sounds harsh, but He is sovereign and His plan is perfect. I believe some forms of "natural disasters" are a deliberate act of God, result of sin, or just plain result of the environment, but again the bottom line is that God is in control and He owes nothing to us. They actually grapsed this concept.
She agreed with most of what I said until it personally applied to her. The most popular words of the conversation was, "well I believe" or "to me". The facts of the Bible I gave her didn't mean anything to her because of her same claim to that it is twisted. She hadn't studied it, but in God's word where it says, "the fool says in their heart there is no God" constantly ran through my mind. She left after we discussed morality with her friend, but two of the others stayed.
The philosophical guy stayed with his quiet buddy. He shared his background with me regarding Christianity and his journey for truth. I emphasized greatly there is only one way and that way is Jesus Christ. In regards to his remarks about Muslims going to hell, I told him that anyone who doesn't repent and put their trust in Christ is going to hell because of sinning against God. It's not popular, but it's biblical no matter what beliefs we hold to or what kind of picture of God we try paint in our heads. He told me he has an open mind and will think about our discussion and really enjoyed it. He also said that he disagrees with the views of his "Pagan" friend and that she has a lot of misconceptions.
Overall I believe it was a great encounter. They have some serious stuff to think about regarding their eternal destination. Most of the other conversations I had through out the night were the same as usual and went really well, but there was one that really stuck out besides that one. I approached a group of about 8 young teenagers who I had have given tracts to some earlier who were now sitting down. They had recruited a couple more people in their group. I asked if they read the back of them yet and they said no. I asked if I could explain what they were and they said yes. We started talking about the law of God and this one girl starts blurting out, "well God forgives, God forgives" over and over again. I said, I agree with you, but there is a condition and we must realize what that is. When we started discussing hell she blew up. She stated that we don't have to follow the 10 commandments and they don't apply because they were written by a man...
I asked where she got her information and she said her pastor told her that. She told me she goes to a certain church called New Life so I'm going to check it out. I told her that a man did not write the 10 commandments it was God. Then she told everyone that it was a man. I'm sorry, but I told her and everyone else that is a deliberate lie. A sweet little quiet girl said, "God gave Moses the 10 Commandments". The other girl got angrier when I asked if she is familiar with the Bible and she said she didn't believe in the Bible, but she trusted her pastor. She said I don't need to read the Bible and that I need to go to church.
Unfortunately, that is how many people are, but they don't say it. Many put their trust in a man over God's word, she was just bold about it. Her claim was that God will forgive everyone if they just ask not saying anything about Christ.
When I asked where the church was she got mad and said that I'm a stranger and she wouldn't tell me and then started attacking my character for not going to a church and mocking me. She didn't like the fact that I said I was 25 and had been to 5 churches growing up. I said that's fine, I was just asking because I wanted to find out more information about it, but I asked if she was a Christian. She replied by saying yes and asked me why. I asked her if she is a Christian then why is she being so hateful along with being hateful to someone who is trying to share God's word and the gospel with her. Her friends kept apologizing for her, but they said she is just "like that". After that she said let's go...I guess she was there leader. I even told her that I'm sorry that she is getting so upset and that wasn't my intention, but I was simply trying to share God's word with her because I really do care.
I sincerely hope that the pastor doesn't hold to those awful beliefs she claimed. I will contact the church just to make sure though. To me this girl represented a lot of what is going on today, but I couldn't believe her hateful manner. It was ridiculous and those surrounding her noticed to. I asked if anyone around wanted to stay and listen and some of them did and she walked off mad. Thankfully I was able to share the gospel with them and during the middle of it she walked back and gave me the tract saying, "I don't need this". I simply replied by telling her to have a nice night. Hopefully the Lord will do a work on her heart. I apologized to the remaining individuals for the ugliness that was going on and that what she was telling them wasn't truth. They said it was okay and that they stayed because they wanted to hear God's word.
The encounter left me shocked and a little down on myself, but the words of Tony Miano's "Don't Quit" ran through my head as I went back to my car. So I turned around and went back and talked with 2 more groups of people. The last group I talked to was awesome. One of the girls went to a Christian school the last two years and didn't know what the gospel was and all 3 of them thought that being baptized saves you.
I believe they understood the severity of their sin and the position they were in. Their facial expressions changed and eyes were watering as we went through. I pray that it was genuine. At the end of the conversation I asked if they understood what I was saying and they agreed. The guy asked me if he was still going to hell after we went through the gospel. I told him that is between you and God. You have to give up on your own self and cry out to Him. Whatever you love more than God is what you need to turn from. Repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ alone.
I was very blessed by the last conversation and was grateful for the Holy Spirit and the words of Tony Miano's "Don't Quit".
Basically, I got what I prayed for. I was praying for something different and I got it. I prayed for the Lord to do something big and He did it. I have never met two individuals who were so opposed to the things of God in the manner that they were.
May God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey
I felt very nervous driving to my usual spot last night and even as I walked towards my destination when I got there. I couldn't really explain the feeling since I am usually semi-comfortable in the environment. As I walked around I saw a group of what appeared to be a group of late teenagers or early 20's smoking way off by themselves by the lighthouse. I was reluctant at first, usually I am with my first encounter, but I prayed and proceeded on. Some of the individuals looked like the typical "I hate the world and am desperately trying to make a statement with my appearance." As I gave them the tracts I asked them what do they think is in the after-life.
This turned into a more than a half hour conversation so I'll try to sum it up. Two of the guys were pretty quiet until they wanted to chime in agreeing with their "Pagan" friend. I say that because the girl that was with them told me that she was Pagan and she can't say who goes where or if there is even anything. The other boy who spoke up a lot was raised baptist and was currently on a philosophical journey for truth. He claimed that because someone told him at a church camp that all Islams would go to hell and that he was baptized twice without any results he no longer embraced "Christianity." He was a very intelligent individual and I can say that I genuinely enjoyed our conversation together. He actually wound up defending Christianity to an extent to the girl who insistently claimed that if she can't see something, she can't believe it.
I did get through the good person test, but some of these people were really searching for answers and really wanted to get their jabs in at Christianity. I told her that the majority of our country's Christians are hypocrites. She used that against me saying that how can I say that about anyone. That is when I explained that Jesus Christ says in the Bible that you will know them by their fruit. If you disagree with me then look at who is in our office and what our media consists of. There are missionaries from other countries now trying to evangelize our country! She also said that the Bible has been twisted over time and compared it to the DaVinci Code. For everyone who says fictional books can't influence...well I'm telling you right now that they can and they do. This isn't the first time I have had someone use the DaVinci Code to try to disprove the validity of the Bible.
I normally don't get into apologetics much, but there is a rare time and a place for it in witnessing and this was it. The girl was getting really frustrated when I explained that there is evidence of a Creator because since there is a creation there must be a Creator, we have a God-given conscience and God's word. There also has to be truth because there has to be a standard of morality, but there is always a point in this kind of conversation where those who attack the Bible are pinned into a corner when the discussion of morality comes into place. Her defense was that she didn't believe we have a soul and that something didn't have to create everything. Her friends saw the foolishness of this claim as well. I really felt bad for her because I didn't believe she didn't believe there wasn't a God. I really think she hated Him for something. It was like watching and listening to a disobedient child.
For a minute they were trying to say there isn't a God because of Haiti and "bad things" that happen. I told them that what we think is good may not be God's idea of good and that is something we cannot understand or even accurately question. The bottom line is the whole human race isn't deserving of anything but punishment for sinning against a holy righteous God. No one can say they know why Haiti happened, but God will get glory regardless. I know that sounds harsh, but He is sovereign and His plan is perfect. I believe some forms of "natural disasters" are a deliberate act of God, result of sin, or just plain result of the environment, but again the bottom line is that God is in control and He owes nothing to us. They actually grapsed this concept.
She agreed with most of what I said until it personally applied to her. The most popular words of the conversation was, "well I believe" or "to me". The facts of the Bible I gave her didn't mean anything to her because of her same claim to that it is twisted. She hadn't studied it, but in God's word where it says, "the fool says in their heart there is no God" constantly ran through my mind. She left after we discussed morality with her friend, but two of the others stayed.
The philosophical guy stayed with his quiet buddy. He shared his background with me regarding Christianity and his journey for truth. I emphasized greatly there is only one way and that way is Jesus Christ. In regards to his remarks about Muslims going to hell, I told him that anyone who doesn't repent and put their trust in Christ is going to hell because of sinning against God. It's not popular, but it's biblical no matter what beliefs we hold to or what kind of picture of God we try paint in our heads. He told me he has an open mind and will think about our discussion and really enjoyed it. He also said that he disagrees with the views of his "Pagan" friend and that she has a lot of misconceptions.
Overall I believe it was a great encounter. They have some serious stuff to think about regarding their eternal destination. Most of the other conversations I had through out the night were the same as usual and went really well, but there was one that really stuck out besides that one. I approached a group of about 8 young teenagers who I had have given tracts to some earlier who were now sitting down. They had recruited a couple more people in their group. I asked if they read the back of them yet and they said no. I asked if I could explain what they were and they said yes. We started talking about the law of God and this one girl starts blurting out, "well God forgives, God forgives" over and over again. I said, I agree with you, but there is a condition and we must realize what that is. When we started discussing hell she blew up. She stated that we don't have to follow the 10 commandments and they don't apply because they were written by a man...
I asked where she got her information and she said her pastor told her that. She told me she goes to a certain church called New Life so I'm going to check it out. I told her that a man did not write the 10 commandments it was God. Then she told everyone that it was a man. I'm sorry, but I told her and everyone else that is a deliberate lie. A sweet little quiet girl said, "God gave Moses the 10 Commandments". The other girl got angrier when I asked if she is familiar with the Bible and she said she didn't believe in the Bible, but she trusted her pastor. She said I don't need to read the Bible and that I need to go to church.
Unfortunately, that is how many people are, but they don't say it. Many put their trust in a man over God's word, she was just bold about it. Her claim was that God will forgive everyone if they just ask not saying anything about Christ.
When I asked where the church was she got mad and said that I'm a stranger and she wouldn't tell me and then started attacking my character for not going to a church and mocking me. She didn't like the fact that I said I was 25 and had been to 5 churches growing up. I said that's fine, I was just asking because I wanted to find out more information about it, but I asked if she was a Christian. She replied by saying yes and asked me why. I asked her if she is a Christian then why is she being so hateful along with being hateful to someone who is trying to share God's word and the gospel with her. Her friends kept apologizing for her, but they said she is just "like that". After that she said let's go...I guess she was there leader. I even told her that I'm sorry that she is getting so upset and that wasn't my intention, but I was simply trying to share God's word with her because I really do care.
I sincerely hope that the pastor doesn't hold to those awful beliefs she claimed. I will contact the church just to make sure though. To me this girl represented a lot of what is going on today, but I couldn't believe her hateful manner. It was ridiculous and those surrounding her noticed to. I asked if anyone around wanted to stay and listen and some of them did and she walked off mad. Thankfully I was able to share the gospel with them and during the middle of it she walked back and gave me the tract saying, "I don't need this". I simply replied by telling her to have a nice night. Hopefully the Lord will do a work on her heart. I apologized to the remaining individuals for the ugliness that was going on and that what she was telling them wasn't truth. They said it was okay and that they stayed because they wanted to hear God's word.
The encounter left me shocked and a little down on myself, but the words of Tony Miano's "Don't Quit" ran through my head as I went back to my car. So I turned around and went back and talked with 2 more groups of people. The last group I talked to was awesome. One of the girls went to a Christian school the last two years and didn't know what the gospel was and all 3 of them thought that being baptized saves you.
I believe they understood the severity of their sin and the position they were in. Their facial expressions changed and eyes were watering as we went through. I pray that it was genuine. At the end of the conversation I asked if they understood what I was saying and they agreed. The guy asked me if he was still going to hell after we went through the gospel. I told him that is between you and God. You have to give up on your own self and cry out to Him. Whatever you love more than God is what you need to turn from. Repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ alone.
I was very blessed by the last conversation and was grateful for the Holy Spirit and the words of Tony Miano's "Don't Quit".
Basically, I got what I prayed for. I was praying for something different and I got it. I prayed for the Lord to do something big and He did it. I have never met two individuals who were so opposed to the things of God in the manner that they were.
May God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Fishing at the Harbor
And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." - Matthew 4:19
Everyone wants to know what their "calling" is. Everyone's calling is to be a witness for the Lord Jesus Christ. That is a good place to start, dwell, and grow when figuring out your purpose as a Christian.
I had the pleasure of going to my favorite fishing spot last night. It has been getting harder to get out and witness because my wife is pregnant and cannot watch my son by herself very often, thankfully I have been blessed with kind and loving parents who help watch him every Friday or Saturday night.
I unfortunately did not see the local Friday evangelism team out there from a local church, but there were crowds which I was thankful for. I started out by praying and expressing my humility to the Lord how I am not even fit to be a servant for His kingdom, but only by His loving grace. I will never understood why He chose to save me. The first group of people, I think it was about 3 guys and 3 girls, went really well. There is usually some joking around going on when we are going through the law and talking about the attributes of God, but the tone almost always changes immediately when we get to the question, "how do you think you would do on judgment day now that you have told me you are a liar, thief, blasphemer, adulterer at heart, and murderer at heart."
That is when people get defensive and start talking about how God is love and all forgiving. The court room scenario is excellent when it comes to this. I ask them what should happen in a court room, (everyone knows how it works). I ask, "what do you think would happen if you have murdered someone and are standing in front of the judge when it comes to your sentencing. You say that you are sorry and you really, really mean it. Now should the judge let you go because you asked for forgiveness or should he punish you for breaking the law? What would he do if he is really a good judge?" Everyone almost always agrees that a good, loving judge will punish them. I then ask what would they think if they had a million dollar fine they could never pay and someone walks up out of the blue and pays that fine for them. The usual response is, "I would love them, I would be thankful, I would think they are a pretty awesome person". That is when I explain to them the picture I am trying to paint.
God is so loving, holy, righteous, and just that He is our judge and will punish all sinners. It is not a popular message, but it is true. God does HATE. If you love babies then you hate it when they are killed, period. It is common sense. God is so loving that He HAS to hate sin. The Bible says the punishment for sin is death and that all liars will have their part in the lake of fire. Christ preaches more on hell in the New Testament than He does Heaven. Why? Because He is WARNING us of God's wrath! After I make sure they understand the seriousness of their sin we go back to the person that paid their fine. That person is Jesus Christ.
2,000 years ago Jesus Christ came, born of a virgin, fully God and fully man, never once sinned and willingly went to the cross where He suffered the wraith of man and God. He died on that cross and rose three days later FOREVER defeating death. The big thing when I ask everyone this next question is where there are a LOT of misconceptions. I ask, "the important thing is what does the Bible say you have to do to be saved"? We have already seen that saying your sorry will not save you. God is more righteous, good, and holier than a mere earthly judge." The responses I heard last night were, "be baptized, ask Jesus into your heart, give your life to Him, repent, or be born again-be baptized-and get the Holy Ghost".
The unfortunate thing is that no one understood the answers they were giving. I told them that the Bible says you must repent, which means a change of mind resulting in a turning of sin to Christ, AND TRUST in Christ alone for your salvation. I expressed that you have to turn from whatever sin or sins that you love more than God and turn to Christ. Being baptized, praying, asking for forgiveness and going to the right church CAN be good things in context, but they will not save you. The message of the gospel is repentance and faith in Jesus Christ alone. He is the ONLY way.
I really believe there were many that understood the severity of their sin that night and even understood the message of the gospel, but many didn't want to BELIEVE it. I always get excited and nervous when I go to witness, but it is always accompanied by sorrow because I know some of the answers I will get, the rejections, and the ugliness that comes with it. Through out the night there were many individuals who would simply walk away. I talked to about a group of 10 "wanna be" gang looking guys who walked away silently once I asked them if they have ever lusted after someone. One person literally started to eat the gospel tract I gave them...
The saddest thing I heard though is when I asked a couple of groups of people if they were going to heaven and they said, "I believe I am going because I am good person AND I am a Christian." When they told me they deserved hell later in the conversation they could not tell me what they had to do to be saved and they did not know what the gospel was. After the conversation, they would say, "I am already a Christian so I am going to heaven." I am sorry, but no one can be a biblical born-again Christian unless they have repentance and trust in Jesus Christ. A born-again Christian WILL know what the gospel is, because that is message of HOW they were saved!
Another thing I heard that broke my heart is when I was talking to a girl and she told me that she was baptized once, but she started sinning more and she felt worse about herself. She believed that she would be saved and feel closer to God by being baptized. I explained to her and her friends what the purpose of baptism was and how being dunked into water will not save you. Thankfully, that was clarified for her. One individual from a local church requested that I go preach there because he said that one of his preachers said, "no one has balls anymore and will not talk about hell." First, I am wondering why a preacher would be talking like that, second, that is just a sad to hear.
Someone claimed they were a born-again Christian and church goer and then turned it around by saying they don't trust the Bible because it doesn't talk about dinosaurs. They were adamant on why doesn't the Bible talk about dinosaurs. I simply replied by saying, "because the Bible is God's word to us on how to be reconciled to Him. It is not a science book." Even though there are some instances in the book of Job to a dinosaur like creature, I didn't feel the need to bring it up. The position of dinosaurs in the Bible is one that really doesn't need a defense when it comes to the gospel. I also told her that the Bible doesn't talk about hippos either...that made her think.
A very touchy thing that I have been seeing with teenagers now is homosexuality. They have problems with the Bible because it is against being gay. Understand, that this has turned into a cultural thing. The media is making homosexuality more and more acceptable and that is how our youth today is seeing it unfortunately. I told this individual that God's plan for marriage is between a man and a woman. We can see the repercussions of homosexuality and fornication by the development of STDs, AIDS, and other things that have come from the perversion of God's plan for us. Homosexuality is sin and God hates it. I'm sorry, but I cannot and will not candy coat it.
Many people asked me why I was talking to them about God if I did not go to church. I simply replied, "because I am a Christian." Part of my whole being on this facebook and blogging thing is because I want people to realize that Christians are not supposed to simply sit by and watch while proclaiming the title of Christian. You are either going down the well or you are holding the rope for the person who is. God uses the message of the gospel to save and that message is spread by His followers, CHRISTIANS. Theology is an extremely important thing, but I am finding way too many people arguing and debating without doing what God commands us to do. Dividing the truth is biblical and great like I said, but if you do not have an acting passion to reach the lost then I would ask that you PLEASE examine yourself to see if you are in the faith.
There are many people who are out there that like to poke at evangelists about how they do reach the lost and how they don't agree with it. I call it the little red hen syndrome. They don't want to do any of the work and still claim that they are Christian. If you don't share your faith then please do not tell those who love the lost and actually get out and do it, how to do it. I have been seeing the same thing in some of my little posts lately. Everyone wants to put on their Christian hat when they don't agree with what I say when their profile or actions is evidently more worldly than Christian. All I can say to that is, examine yourself first, please.
Overall, it was a blessing to be able to do God's work as it always is. It is not always easy, but being a Christian is not easy work. Don't get me wrong. It is fun, rewarding, humbling, humiliating at times, but none of those things matter because it is all for God's glory. I am a wretched man simply trying to serve my Father because I do love Him with all my heart and I really do love people. That is something I could not have said and meant before He changed me.
Fortunately, I truly believe there are individuals who will think about our conversations last night. One person I talked to I had spoken with three times before. I told her it was not a coincidence. The person who ate the tract asked for another after our 20 minute conversation was over and they even took a Bible. I rarely carry one in my pocket anymore, but God surprised me when I felt convicted not putting it in my pocket that night. I'm glad I did. Hopefully she will eat it mentally rather than physically. : )
Please say a prayer for these individuals and other laborers out there who proclaim the saving gospel of Jesus Christ. Thank you so much for reading!
May God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey Acker
Everyone wants to know what their "calling" is. Everyone's calling is to be a witness for the Lord Jesus Christ. That is a good place to start, dwell, and grow when figuring out your purpose as a Christian.
I had the pleasure of going to my favorite fishing spot last night. It has been getting harder to get out and witness because my wife is pregnant and cannot watch my son by herself very often, thankfully I have been blessed with kind and loving parents who help watch him every Friday or Saturday night.
I unfortunately did not see the local Friday evangelism team out there from a local church, but there were crowds which I was thankful for. I started out by praying and expressing my humility to the Lord how I am not even fit to be a servant for His kingdom, but only by His loving grace. I will never understood why He chose to save me. The first group of people, I think it was about 3 guys and 3 girls, went really well. There is usually some joking around going on when we are going through the law and talking about the attributes of God, but the tone almost always changes immediately when we get to the question, "how do you think you would do on judgment day now that you have told me you are a liar, thief, blasphemer, adulterer at heart, and murderer at heart."
That is when people get defensive and start talking about how God is love and all forgiving. The court room scenario is excellent when it comes to this. I ask them what should happen in a court room, (everyone knows how it works). I ask, "what do you think would happen if you have murdered someone and are standing in front of the judge when it comes to your sentencing. You say that you are sorry and you really, really mean it. Now should the judge let you go because you asked for forgiveness or should he punish you for breaking the law? What would he do if he is really a good judge?" Everyone almost always agrees that a good, loving judge will punish them. I then ask what would they think if they had a million dollar fine they could never pay and someone walks up out of the blue and pays that fine for them. The usual response is, "I would love them, I would be thankful, I would think they are a pretty awesome person". That is when I explain to them the picture I am trying to paint.
God is so loving, holy, righteous, and just that He is our judge and will punish all sinners. It is not a popular message, but it is true. God does HATE. If you love babies then you hate it when they are killed, period. It is common sense. God is so loving that He HAS to hate sin. The Bible says the punishment for sin is death and that all liars will have their part in the lake of fire. Christ preaches more on hell in the New Testament than He does Heaven. Why? Because He is WARNING us of God's wrath! After I make sure they understand the seriousness of their sin we go back to the person that paid their fine. That person is Jesus Christ.
2,000 years ago Jesus Christ came, born of a virgin, fully God and fully man, never once sinned and willingly went to the cross where He suffered the wraith of man and God. He died on that cross and rose three days later FOREVER defeating death. The big thing when I ask everyone this next question is where there are a LOT of misconceptions. I ask, "the important thing is what does the Bible say you have to do to be saved"? We have already seen that saying your sorry will not save you. God is more righteous, good, and holier than a mere earthly judge." The responses I heard last night were, "be baptized, ask Jesus into your heart, give your life to Him, repent, or be born again-be baptized-and get the Holy Ghost".
The unfortunate thing is that no one understood the answers they were giving. I told them that the Bible says you must repent, which means a change of mind resulting in a turning of sin to Christ, AND TRUST in Christ alone for your salvation. I expressed that you have to turn from whatever sin or sins that you love more than God and turn to Christ. Being baptized, praying, asking for forgiveness and going to the right church CAN be good things in context, but they will not save you. The message of the gospel is repentance and faith in Jesus Christ alone. He is the ONLY way.
I really believe there were many that understood the severity of their sin that night and even understood the message of the gospel, but many didn't want to BELIEVE it. I always get excited and nervous when I go to witness, but it is always accompanied by sorrow because I know some of the answers I will get, the rejections, and the ugliness that comes with it. Through out the night there were many individuals who would simply walk away. I talked to about a group of 10 "wanna be" gang looking guys who walked away silently once I asked them if they have ever lusted after someone. One person literally started to eat the gospel tract I gave them...
The saddest thing I heard though is when I asked a couple of groups of people if they were going to heaven and they said, "I believe I am going because I am good person AND I am a Christian." When they told me they deserved hell later in the conversation they could not tell me what they had to do to be saved and they did not know what the gospel was. After the conversation, they would say, "I am already a Christian so I am going to heaven." I am sorry, but no one can be a biblical born-again Christian unless they have repentance and trust in Jesus Christ. A born-again Christian WILL know what the gospel is, because that is message of HOW they were saved!
Another thing I heard that broke my heart is when I was talking to a girl and she told me that she was baptized once, but she started sinning more and she felt worse about herself. She believed that she would be saved and feel closer to God by being baptized. I explained to her and her friends what the purpose of baptism was and how being dunked into water will not save you. Thankfully, that was clarified for her. One individual from a local church requested that I go preach there because he said that one of his preachers said, "no one has balls anymore and will not talk about hell." First, I am wondering why a preacher would be talking like that, second, that is just a sad to hear.
Someone claimed they were a born-again Christian and church goer and then turned it around by saying they don't trust the Bible because it doesn't talk about dinosaurs. They were adamant on why doesn't the Bible talk about dinosaurs. I simply replied by saying, "because the Bible is God's word to us on how to be reconciled to Him. It is not a science book." Even though there are some instances in the book of Job to a dinosaur like creature, I didn't feel the need to bring it up. The position of dinosaurs in the Bible is one that really doesn't need a defense when it comes to the gospel. I also told her that the Bible doesn't talk about hippos either...that made her think.
A very touchy thing that I have been seeing with teenagers now is homosexuality. They have problems with the Bible because it is against being gay. Understand, that this has turned into a cultural thing. The media is making homosexuality more and more acceptable and that is how our youth today is seeing it unfortunately. I told this individual that God's plan for marriage is between a man and a woman. We can see the repercussions of homosexuality and fornication by the development of STDs, AIDS, and other things that have come from the perversion of God's plan for us. Homosexuality is sin and God hates it. I'm sorry, but I cannot and will not candy coat it.
Many people asked me why I was talking to them about God if I did not go to church. I simply replied, "because I am a Christian." Part of my whole being on this facebook and blogging thing is because I want people to realize that Christians are not supposed to simply sit by and watch while proclaiming the title of Christian. You are either going down the well or you are holding the rope for the person who is. God uses the message of the gospel to save and that message is spread by His followers, CHRISTIANS. Theology is an extremely important thing, but I am finding way too many people arguing and debating without doing what God commands us to do. Dividing the truth is biblical and great like I said, but if you do not have an acting passion to reach the lost then I would ask that you PLEASE examine yourself to see if you are in the faith.
There are many people who are out there that like to poke at evangelists about how they do reach the lost and how they don't agree with it. I call it the little red hen syndrome. They don't want to do any of the work and still claim that they are Christian. If you don't share your faith then please do not tell those who love the lost and actually get out and do it, how to do it. I have been seeing the same thing in some of my little posts lately. Everyone wants to put on their Christian hat when they don't agree with what I say when their profile or actions is evidently more worldly than Christian. All I can say to that is, examine yourself first, please.
Overall, it was a blessing to be able to do God's work as it always is. It is not always easy, but being a Christian is not easy work. Don't get me wrong. It is fun, rewarding, humbling, humiliating at times, but none of those things matter because it is all for God's glory. I am a wretched man simply trying to serve my Father because I do love Him with all my heart and I really do love people. That is something I could not have said and meant before He changed me.
Fortunately, I truly believe there are individuals who will think about our conversations last night. One person I talked to I had spoken with three times before. I told her it was not a coincidence. The person who ate the tract asked for another after our 20 minute conversation was over and they even took a Bible. I rarely carry one in my pocket anymore, but God surprised me when I felt convicted not putting it in my pocket that night. I'm glad I did. Hopefully she will eat it mentally rather than physically. : )
Please say a prayer for these individuals and other laborers out there who proclaim the saving gospel of Jesus Christ. Thank you so much for reading!
May God bless you and yours!
In Christ,
Joey Acker